Lantana Trip Report

[pdoege]

Hello -

I dove on the Starfish Enterprise on Sun 10/20/02.

Great diving!

The first dive was on the wreck Capt. Tony. This freighter was sunk as an artificial reef in 1996. She lies upright in about 85 feet of water. The vis was good enough to see her clearly from the surface. Her deck is gone and many large holes have been cut into her to make penetrations easy. There is a goliath grouper that calls her home, but we didn't see him.

The second dive was on a reef called the "Briny Breezes". Only about 60 feet down. Vis was 100+. Lovely reef, lots of smaller fish. Went in first, came out last. Friggin HID ran out of batteries! Phooey! Not a problem though as sunlight was getting all the way down.

Air Temp was 93, water was 83. Surface conditions were 1-2 feet. Very few clouds. Couldn't ask for better weather.

Had a great time, the Starfish is a good operation.

Peter Doege

 

[nitroxbabe]

I dove with Captain Craig on the Starfish last April. I agree that they're a good operation and they showed us a good time, not to mention that they're good people. My husband (and buddy!) and I had a couple extra diving days than the rest of the group but the Starfish was full. Captain Craig was kind enough to recommend Kelly's on The Bay (AquaNuts) in Key Largo, where we spent a couple great days and got in several more dives!

 

[pdoege]

I remember *****ing that Starfish was 2.5 hours away from home.

Looks like you guys traveled a bit further!

The Starfish captain and crew are top notch, the reefs and wrecks are very close to shore.

Can't ask for too much more than that.

Peter Doege

 

[gmbaker]

sounds like a great trip. I am from New England and will be coming down OCt 31 and am having trouble deciding between tarFish Enterprise and Coral Island charters.

Both my girlfriend and I have done about 40 shore dives ( no boat) and was hoping you could help me answer:

1) Did you rent equipment or bring all you own. My gf needs to rent, and wanted to know the quality of their gear.

2) What level of help do they dive you? do you think a divemaster is needed? did you use one?

3) I get the feeling Starfish is a good operation, but is geared towards divers who just want to do their own thing. Any comments to help me out ?

Starfish is a lot closer to where we will be staying vs driving about 1 hr and this being our first warm water boat trip, wanted to make the best choice.

 

[pdoege]

Hello -

I brought all of my own equipment. They seem to have the standard jacket inflation BCs and whatnot for rent. Typical rental quality. I don't remember seeing any wetsuits, but I wasn't really looking. They do both air and nitrox fills.

They are very friendly and will give you whatever level of help you need. I have seen them assist divers in donning gear and walking to the stern. They will do multiple passes over the site until everyone is off. I had a DM both times, I do not feel that they are/were needed.

Starfish seems to do whatever the divers want. If you want a nice lazy drift dive, then you'll get one. The captain has always gone out of his way to keep his passengers happy.

The only time I've been a bit pissy is when a DM from the diveshop I was with sent me and my buddy up 600psi early because she didn't know the hand signals for 1600 psi. Still, she was just the DM and is not associated with Starfish.

You should post a thread asking about Coral Island. I've never used them.

Regards,
Peter Doege

 

[blueocean]

Thanks for the heads up on the Starfish. I live not far from Northwest Divers who uses the Starfish and I have been curious to know about it. I don't have a dive bubby, so I like the charters where you can be paired up with someone. It's better than not diving at all, right?
Anyway, I dove with Coral Island Charters last month and they are very good! They have a large boat, with plenty of room. We had about 12 people, but it never felt cramped. There is a bar in the center to hang onto when you're getting ready to dive. There are also 2 soak tubs and 2 shower hoses and a small head. They serve snacks and soda during the surface interval. The captain will also take you to whatever type of diving you want. They have over 10 sites they can take you to anywhere from beginner to advanced. The first dive we went on was a 90 foot wall (drift dive) called Juno wall. Lots of fish, a nurse shark, turtle etc. The second dive was to the ToyBox, an old barge at about 55 feet (not drift). The only thing I didn't like was that the seas were 4 and 5 feet (I got seasick for the 1st time ever) and there was a 2knot current that was not fun diving into when diving the barge. I can't wait to dive with Coral Island again. They could be a little better at helping people get back to the seats when the board the boat again. But I do recommend them. They are very nice and try very hard to accommodate everyone's wishes. I hope that helps.
:slick:

 

[gmbaker]

thanks for the input. I had decided to go with Coral Island, but have come down with a cold. That is what happens when one day it is 70 and then next 55 here in Boston. I still have a few days to shake it off and hope to still make a dive if they have room....