Palm Beach Dive Thread

[h2o_hamilton]

For those who haven't seen the Emerald video from this weekend. Hopefully the link will work.

WTF?!

 

[johndiver999]

Blue water, 50 ft vis warm moderate current

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

So there's an 'un-written courtesy' that most of us WPB spearo's follow (Not all do)
We don't spear on Flower Gardens nor Breakers reefs, but do catch lobster/lionfish there. Just those 2 spots and all the captains know about it. It's kinda like you don't blast music at 2am cause your neighbor's 'silent revenge' may not be pretty. It's a big ocean with plenty of other places to hunt.
Great picts and glad you got out on the reefs for a change of scenery from the bridge.

What's the reasoning behind it? Curious

 

[PBcatfish]

What's the reasoning behind it? Curious

Maintaining tourism. The out-of-towners need something cool to look at.

 

[Johnoly]

What's the reasoning behind it? Curious

@PBcatfish said it best, it's to preserve the mass quantities of fish life and plants on those 2 reefs. Just my opinion but like BHB is a unique treasure, so is Breakers and Flower Gardens. For newer divers, it's a strong memory to be completely surrounded by colorful fish as you swim thru them for your 1st time diving. Honestly those 2 reefs are not thick with prized edible huge size spearfishing, it's all the colorful tropicals. The main benefit being - that it keeps paying divers coming back to dive boats to keep them in business (and we really need all the dive boats profitable so we have choices). I don't hunt/net at or near BHB even though the fisherman can.

All the WPB dive boat captains talk to each other, just like all the BHB divers talk. Diver's who pick fights with other divers don't get on charter boats for very long and are told the 'boat's full' even when it's not. So most (not all) spearo's just pick a different and usually a more productive dive site nearby.

 

[tekkydiver]

Maintaining tourism. The out-of-towners need something cool to look at.

Keep in mind that the resource is paid for by fisherman. Licenses and taxes (Dingell-Johnson and Wallop-Breayux) Divers are militantly opposed to any fees that apply strictly to them

 

[NothingClever]

For those who haven't seen the Emerald video from this weekend. Hopefully the link will work.

Oopies.

 

[h2o_hamilton]

Report today: Went with Kyalami out of Riviera. Strong westerly winds so we stayed inshore and dove Elevator Shaft and Bath & Tennis.

Viz 50’+/-, bottom temp of 76 (brrrrrr!) and a bit of surge. Saw a half dozen bugs on the western ledge.