KP Hole questions?

[Waterwulf]

I'm heading to Florida for a while and plan on doing some drift dives in the Rainbow River. The last time I dove that river was in the 70's. It was all jungle on both sides. Anyway,

Can you SCUBA dive in the swimming area? I'd like to get my weights adjusted prior to getting dropped off a mile upstream. How about SNUBA diving in the same area? How long does it take to get from the drop off point upriver down to KP Hole?
Thanks

 

[Johnoly]

I'd like to get my weights adjusted prior to getting dropped off a mile upstream.

@Rilelen is best to answer and I've only been a couple of times, but I'll give you what I saw. The swim area is for swimming only. There is no lifeguard just sometimes a dock monitor who won't let any items in the water like floats, toys and gear. You can't scuba/snuba in the swim area. There is an exit ramp that is right infront and next to the boat parking, but it's a transition area, not a dive area.

You really need to have your weights set before you get to the park since the boat leaves immediately after dropping you. You'll be bouncing at different depths of 25ft up to 10ft so it's best to look at your past freshwater dives at 15ft safety stop weights. Also I carry the dive flag float and just hang on the line to easily control my buoyancy.

It takes about 15-20mins for the boat ride depending. If it's a busy weekend on the river and paddleboarders, tubers, diveflags 'swarm' the boat, it has to stop/idle for them to pass by. There are people that will steer directly towards the boat, lol. Most times the boat will drop divers off well before reaching the top of the river. You can immediately swim to the shallow edges and stand up in chest deep water to adjust gear & get your group together to start the drift. It's a 45 minute dive time for me underwater back to the exit point, but you can stop as often as you like and just watch the fish dart in & out of the grasses.

Lastly, be there early by 10am or the park may be at capacity & close. There are some small lockers, but it's really best to only bring inside the park, those items that you are taking underwater. The attendants don't play around too much and I've seen people kicked out for breaking the rules. It's a really fun dive and perfect for divers to do an inland drift dive in very clear water.

 

[Rilelen]

Can you SCUBA dive in the swimming area? I'd like to get my weights adjusted prior to getting dropped off a mile upstream. How about SNUBA diving in the same area? How long does it take to get from the drop off point upriver down to KP Hole?
Thanks

Divers can exit the water from the swim area, but it’s not really a place for diving, especially if you are there on a busy weekend. If you’re concerned about weights, I’d suggest heading to nearby Fanning Springs State Park and doing a dive there first to check your weights etc - most of the spring is 3-4’, with a deeper part that goes down to 20-25’.

If you aren’t sure, I recommend overweighting yourself by about four pounds. Most of the river is less than 15’, so if you’re weighted to be neutrally buoyant at 15’, you will be too light during the dive.

If you swim the whole way from the drop-off point, instead of drifting and poking around, it’s about a 45-minute dive. I have buddies who can easily stretch that out to 90 minutes.

Britt (the water taxi captain) can also do longer dives by request, once you’ve done the river and he knows you won’t run out of air. He’ll run you up past the standard drop off point up closer to the state park.

The water taxi runs all day on Saturday and Sunday, no need for reservations. It’s cash only. For dives during the week, call or text in advance, and there may be a minimum number of divers/payment to go out. You will need to bring your own tow flag.

Rainbow Water Taxi

Travel Agent Service

www.rainbowriverwatertaxi.com

 

[Waterwulf]

Thanks for the info. We're staying at an RV park in Inverness so I'll be close to KP Hole but Fanning Springs is planned for a few days later. We're heading right past it on the way home. I'm thinking maybe I'll hit the Rainbow River State Park and get wet in the swimming area. It says that snorkeling is allowed so maybe SCUBA is too hopefully.

 

[Rilelen]

Scuba isn’t allowed in the headspring at Rainbow unfortunately.

 

[Waterwulf]

What about SNUBA? I have a rig for that.