aihfl
Contributor
My wife and I braved the chilly Gulf waters yesterday off Sarasota. Bottom temps were about 65 degrees - chilly but still tolerable. Our first site was M4, one of Sarasota County's artificial reef sites. Viz was about 30 feet and max depth was 47 feet. Sheepshead were out in abundance. There was also an impressive array of starfish and other assorted mollusks. I enjoyed the limited size of the site, which allowed us to examine everything in close detail at a leisurely pace.
The second site was Five Mile Ledge, closer in to shore. Visibility was tolerable, but not great at 10-15 feet. Max depth was 43 feet. The ledge disappears in places and in the poor viz, it was sometimes difficult to discern where it reappeared. However, there was an interesting assortment of critters under the ledge, including arrow crabs and lobsters. On the topside of the ledge, I have never seen so many sea cucumbers in my life. Seeing a starfish feeding was also a highlight.
We dove off one of SeaQuest's boats. For Bay Ronto fans, they said that trips to the Bay Ronto will be returning shortly, pending USCG approval.
Because of the marginal viz, I don't anticipate great pictures, but I'm going to take the film to BJ's today or tommorrow, and if any turned out ok, I'll be sure to post them.
The second site was Five Mile Ledge, closer in to shore. Visibility was tolerable, but not great at 10-15 feet. Max depth was 43 feet. The ledge disappears in places and in the poor viz, it was sometimes difficult to discern where it reappeared. However, there was an interesting assortment of critters under the ledge, including arrow crabs and lobsters. On the topside of the ledge, I have never seen so many sea cucumbers in my life. Seeing a starfish feeding was also a highlight.
We dove off one of SeaQuest's boats. For Bay Ronto fans, they said that trips to the Bay Ronto will be returning shortly, pending USCG approval.
Because of the marginal viz, I don't anticipate great pictures, but I'm going to take the film to BJ's today or tommorrow, and if any turned out ok, I'll be sure to post them.
