Panama City Dive Trip

[JKSteger]

PCB is just too pricey. My parents will not even go there anymore. Why should they. They work for Delta Airlines and get free flights to anywhere. They said they can have hotel stay in Bahamahs, Mexico, etc. alot less expensive than hotel/condo in PCB.

I'm thinking about testing the waters off of North Carolina as a dive spot. I've heard that it was great diving. PCB is too expensive for what you get out of it.

Jeremy

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

Don't stay on the beach, stay in PC itself inland and you'll save money. I love the fact that the place is located about an hour from the springs, with a multitude of offshore opportunities and even some beach diving options.

Besides, I know of a charter with a guest house for cheap. $125 for two tanks including one night stay.

 

[Dao Jones]

However, PCB looks like a war zone in some areas. They bulldoze the old beach hotels and the shops across the street go out of business. They then build 20-30 story high rises and put parking decks across the street with air conditioned walk ways over the tops of the streets. It's killing all the "character" of the town.

Until last month I haven't been to PCB in about 10 years and was shocked at the high rise construction and the disappearence of the cool little motels along the beach. It's sure not the PCB I knew in the 70's and 80's. It's just sickening.

 

[mike_s]

Until last month I haven't been to PCB in about 10 years and was shocked at the high rise construction and the disappearence of the cool little motels along the beach. It's sure not the PCB I knew in the 70's and 80's. It's just sickening.

If you want to see what PCB is headed to be, then take a trip over to Destin.

PCB wants to be "so much like Destin" that it's pitifull.

 

[DEEPLOU]

Did my trip to PCB, as it turned out it was Labor Day weekend, and I didn't even realize it. Well...
As to the costs down there, since I was visiting my son who is currently living there, hotel not an issue. Dive trip price... I am used to paying $80 to $125 (sometimes more) for a trip here in NY. And that does not include any tanks , fills etc. Just a boat ride. Of course we leave the dock at 6am or 6:30 am and don't get back till late afternoon or so.

My Labor Day weekend trip.. on friday was supposed to go out w/ Diver's Den, but there were only two of us that showed up. They arranged for us to run with PCDC. We did the USS Strong (i believe) and the Lost Plontoon, (anything that is not a "real" ship wreck I forget the name). On the Monday, again with Diver's Den. They had at least two boats going that I remember. I ended on a boat called the Seahunter. Small 6 pack, but it seemed like nice operation. I was supposed to be on another boat first, but it had 7 passengers on a 6 pack, and this boat was also set up with 6 divers, but I heard the capt "threw off" 3 divers who were an inst w/ 2 students as he, the capt wanted to go out deep and couldn't do that with students. So i ended up with 4 divers and the crew. Not crowded, and the capt was very personable and seemed to know his business. We had a great day on the Tarpon and I think he called the other the "Lost Barge".

My tuesday cancelled out as no one from any shop was going.

This past weekend was in FL again but to east coast doing Boyntan Beach and Keys.
This comming weekend its back to NY waters assuming the weather gods cooperate.

 

[PerroneFord]

I did a dive this summer in PCB. First one in many years. Last time I dove in PCB was with Hydrospace when they were under the bridge in the mid 90s. We took the afternoon boat on the weekend and they do offshore dives then. Did the FAMI tugs. GREAT dive. Dove off Splash and had a great afternoon.

Only other gulf dive I did was the Oriskany out of P'Cola. Boat was awesome, dive was so-so.

PCB certainly has issues, and it's unfortunate. But I haven't been out of Destin. Very little over there I am interested in until I get full trimix.

 

[KansaiKitsune]

If you want to see what PCB is headed to be, then take a trip over to Destin.

PCB wants to be "so much like Destin" that it's pitifull.

It's much worse than that: PCB wants to be Orlando, Miami, or Daytona. They have plans for amusement parks and all kinds of horrible things that will ruin it. It's so depressing to see a town you grew up in and felt comfortable with sell out to big business because a group of snotty politicians are getting kickbacks from the St. Joe Paper Company.

The good thing is, citizens are pissed off, and rightly so. They tripled property taxes over the last year, and people went BERSERK at that point.

It's obvious that some of these people never played Simcity.

 

[SeaAggie]

Did my trip to PCB, as it turned out it was Labor Day weekend, and I didn't even realize it. Well...
As to the costs down there, since I was visiting my son who is currently living there, hotel not an issue. Dive trip price... I am used to paying $80 to $125 (sometimes more) for a trip here in NY. And that does not include any tanks , fills etc. Just a boat ride. Of course we leave the dock at 6am or 6:30 am and don't get back till late afternoon or so.

My Labor Day weekend trip.. on friday was supposed to go out w/ Diver's Den, but there were only two of us that showed up. They arranged for us to run with PCDC. We did the USS Strong (i believe) and the Lost Plontoon, (anything that is not a "real" ship wreck I forget the name). On the Monday, again with Diver's Den. They had at least two boats going that I remember. I ended on a boat called the Seahunter. Small 6 pack, but it seemed like nice operation. I was supposed to be on another boat first, but it had 7 passengers on a 6 pack, and this boat was also set up with 6 divers, but I heard the capt "threw off" 3 divers who were an inst w/ 2 students as he, the capt wanted to go out deep and couldn't do that with students. So i ended up with 4 divers and the crew. Not crowded, and the capt was very personable and seemed to know his business. We had a great day on the Tarpon and I think he called the other the "Lost Barge".

My tuesday cancelled out as no one from any shop was going.

This past weekend was in FL again but to east coast doing Boyntan Beach and Keys.
This comming weekend its back to NY waters assuming the weather gods cooperate.

Seahunter. Thanks for telling me who runs that boat. That #$%^# buzzed by us just as we were getting into the water last Saturday. He was at full throttle, less than 50 yards from our boat. Its always good to find that even the pro-dive boats ignore a dive flag. I might have to make a stop over there during my lunch.

 

[Wayward Son]

The wreck was the Strength. The pontoon is not Lost, but the LOSS pontoon.

It's an acronym, LOSS = Large Object Submerbible Salvage or some such. It was used by the Navy for training purposes. They'd sink it, slavge & float it, then do it all over again.

 

[KansaiKitsune]

Seahunter. Thanks for telling me who runs that boat. That #$%^# buzzed by us just as we were getting into the water last Saturday. He was at full throttle, less than 50 yards from our boat. Its always good to find that even the pro-dive boats ignore a dive flag. I might have to make a stop over there during my lunch.

Just to let you know, there's more than one Seahunter here in PC. There's a Sea Hunter and a Seahunter that I have seen. There's probably more, who can say?