Might be moving to NC!

[tracydr]

Hey y'all! My husband is interviewing for a job at UNC-Pembroke. Can you give me some details about the diving? We are used to cold water diving so have drysuits. Hoping to take GUE-Fundies and some tech classes.
I understand there isn't much shore diving, which we love, but when the boats aren't going out ( they look very seasonal from the calendars online?) I'm wondering what's available? Could we do Cooper River on our own? Is there any other place that can be done without a charter?
We're considering getting a smaller boat, although we might even get one that could take us offshore if we can swing the finances for it and it looks worthwhile.
What about spearfishing?
Looks like we would be only 3 hours away from Charleston, if that helps. 1 1/2 hours from Myrtle Beach.

 

[TONY CHANEY]

To you and your husband, welcome to NC. You'll love the diving here as well as the weather. Most of us, that dive year round, wear drysuits. Just a few places to check out on the web.

Cooper river...at must and yes you can do it yourself but a guide will help put you on the beds.

Lake Jocassee...you want tech training without the long boat ride this is the place. Well over 300' deep, beautiful area, boat, charter or walk in. Has a graveyard, forest and you can get some good vis.

NCPDRA...a very nice group of divers that got together many years ago and purchased 3 quarries. Pay you annual dues and you get a key with access to all 3 quarries, 24/7 and all year! A great place to start, continue skills, it's members and guest only and you'll make some great connections and friendships.

Scuba Diving in North Carolina. NC wreck diving, NC dive trips, Diving in NC.

Welcome and I hope this helps.

 

[tracydr]

Well, we're not there,yet. But I think they like him. Its a pretty competitive interview process and they're down to the last 3-4 candidates.

---------- Post added November 22nd, 2013 at 10:00 AM ----------

Are there any dive boats that go out in the winter?

 

[Akimbo]

The only operational diver's lift I know of in the US is out of Hatteras Landing Marina in Hatteras, North Carolina. Hopefully it will help with all at tech gear you plan on using

Capt JT's - Under Pressure Dive Charters in Hatteras NC and Virginia Beach VA

 

[tracydr]

Thanks, Akimbo! That will come in handy if my knees don't act like they should. So far, my stem cell transplant seems to be taking nicely. I'm walking up to three miles a day and have even lifted a few bags of chicken feed. So, I think,for now, I may be in the clear, depending on how the ankles do. The blood thinner that I've taken for 90 days has a pretty good track record of stopping the process and sometimes reversing it so I hope we caught the ankles in time to do this. Ankles are a really bad place to have osteonecrosis! Luckily, it looks like the ankles were caught in stage 1, which gives the blood thinner an excellent chance of working.
That said, I will still need to be careful with heavy lifting and may need to go the sidemount route for doubles.
One thing I'm terribly excited about is the fact that Pembroke is only about 6 hours from cave country. My dream,and why I want to tech dive, is so that I can cave dive. I had never really thought we would live close enough to cave country to actually be able to cave dive on a regular basis. Now it might actually happen!

 

[robertarak]

I love NC diving! So much that I was online looking at property there last week. I want to move there and think I will sooner or later. Maybe SCUBATUDE, NC. What do you think? LOL

I'll wait until I have completed my GUE Fundie Instructor internship, just for you.

 

[tracydr]

Thanks, Robert. I can't wait to try the caves. I've been dreaming of cave diving for years and now I might actually get to do it. My husband loves wrecks, so there's something for both of us.
I'm pretty happy diving anywhere so just having water available will be a huge attraction for me. And warm water diving in the summer? What a special treat!

 

[diversteve]

Express Watersports - in Murrells Inlet just south of Myrtle Beach - advertises they're open all year. Whether they dive offshore in winter is another question - I think some operators in that area run weekend trips down to FL during that time. It's almost all wreck diving except for some shallow ledges. Express Water Sports - Myrtle Beach Scuba, hydro testing in Myrtle Beach area South Carolina 843-357-7777 No shore diving there at all, we asked both them and Coastal Scuba in North Myrtle Beach. It seemed too sandy and shallow. In June, the water was 80+ I dove in a t-shirt (lots of jellyfish)

There's the big reef tank (2 story+) at Charleston Aquarium. Someone was diving in it doing some cleaning when we walked by. That would be warm.... We tried getting out with Charleston Scuba but they cancelled due a pending storm. They also had some affiliation with one of the Cooper River operators.

 

[uncfnp]

And don't forget all the other wonderful outdoor activities NC has to offer. Hiking, biking, fishing. The US National Whitewater Center is in Charlotte. Mountains, Sandhills and beaches, we got it all. Can you tell I love North Carolina, Go Heels!

Good luck with the interviews.

 

[Randy g]

Diving NC is a real treat Tracy. Morehead City has several large and small boats to get out the majority of the season. Then just head south a days drive and be in cave country for those long nasty, cold winter months. MHC has a shore dive on Radio Island that I have not had the pleasure to do.....yet.

We dive from JT's boat UnderPressure in Hatteras and with Capt James's Tortuga Charters out of Morehead. Both are 6 packs an a great way to dive the gorgeous NC wrecks. Let me know if you make the move, I charter the 6 pack boats and take only experienced divers out with us. So we get nice long, relaxed dives instead of the cattle boat syndrome, hurry up dives that the large dive ops have.