South Florida trip Thanksgiving

[jf3193]

Good evening.
After some research, we will be staying in Juno beach Thanksgiving week. I’ve been doing my research, and it looks like the closest operation in the area are in Jupiter or WPB.
I was curious if WPB ( pura vida divers) would have enough to keep us going for the entire week, or would I be better served by trying out a few locations close by?
If the diving is comparable at each, I’d rather just stay with one shop and see what’s nearby. I plan on doing some charter dives, and maybe some afternoon shore diving at BHB ( if the tides lineup)
From what I’ve been told, Jupiter tends to be more sharky and pelagic, due to the deeper dive profiles. Are there decent chances to see sharks at the other spots further down? ( WPB, Boynton)
Forgive my questions, I’ve just never stayed in S. Florida before. We always drive through and hit the keys.

 

[Lostdiver71]

That week the tides do line up really well for diving the Blue Heron Bridge, there are also sponsored night dives at the bridge both Saturday the 28th and Sunday the 29th. I wholeheartedly recommend a day dive at the bridge earlier in the week followed by a night dive if you can on Saturday or Sunday. A lot of what is available for sites will depend on the sea conditions, that time of year it can get rough sometimes. Pura Vida should be able to keep you busy at different sites for most of a week if the conditions are good, if not there are more than a dozen operators between Jupiter and Boynton and most of them are good. Pura Vida is one of the best operators but so are Oceanquest, Jupiter Dive Center, and Scuba Works, those are the operations I personally have used recently. Just be aware that the Jupiter sites tend to be a little deeper than the more Southern areas. Sharks and Goliath Grouper are always a possibility, especially on wrecks. Some of the coolest stuff to see is hiding in the reefs or wrecks but don't forget to look around every so often as you can see all kinds of sea life swimming around but you have to actually look around! In my 35+ years of diving this area, I have seen every type of shark in these waters except for a Great White, also Manta Rays, Turtles, a Whale, and a Whale shark. Some of the divers on the same dive did not see what I saw because they became too focused on the reef. Also, look under ledges and you will see stuff hiding there and make sure to look around on your safety stop as you never know what will swim by. Also don't believe the weather forecast as it can change very quickly, even overnight! Always call the dive operator for a forecast as they will know if the conditions are good or not. Force-E usually has a daily Blue Heron Bridge dive report on Facebook and both Force-E and Pura Vida Divers have tide tables and maps on their website. I hope you have good conditions especially since I also plan on diving that week.

 

[jf3193]

That week the tides do line up really well for diving the Blue Heron Bridge, there are also sponsored night dives at the bridge both Saturday the 28th and Sunday the 29th. I wholeheartedly recommend a day dive at the bridge earlier in the week followed by a night dive if you can on Saturday or Sunday. A lot of what is available for sites will depend on the sea conditions, that time of year it can get rough sometimes. Pura Vida should be able to keep you busy at different sites for most of a week if the conditions are good, if not there are more than a dozen operators between Jupiter and Boynton and most of them are good. Pura Vida is one of the best operators but so are Oceanquest, Jupiter Dive Center, and Scuba Works, those are the operations I personally have used recently. Just be aware that the Jupiter sites tend to be a little deeper than the more Southern areas. Sharks and Goliath Grouper are always a possibility, especially on wrecks. Some of the coolest stuff to see is hiding in the reefs or wrecks but don't forget to look around every so often as you can see all kinds of sea life swimming around but you have to actually look around! In my 35+ years of diving this area, I have seen every type of shark in these waters except for a Great White, also Manta Rays, Turtles, a Whale, and a Whale shark. Some of the divers on the same dive did not see what I saw because they became too focused on the reef. Also, look under ledges and you will see stuff hiding there and make sure to look around on your safety stop as you never know what will swim by. Also don't believe the weather forecast as it can change very quickly, even overnight! Always call the dive operator for a forecast as they will know if the conditions are good or not. Force-E usually has a daily Blue Heron Bridge dive report on Facebook and both Force-E and Pura Vida Divers have tide tables and maps on their website. I hope you have good conditions especially since I also plan on diving that week.

Thanks a lot! That’s pretty helpful. Glad to know that will be a good week for BHB. I tend to be a very relaxed diver. Seems like you see more

 

[Johnoly]

... better served by trying out a few locations close by?...

Juno's in the middle, So why not split your dives between WPB & Jup?. Kinda like ordering the 'sampler' platter at Red Lobster and you get a taste of everything.

PVD is excellent. And they are very good friends with Jupiter Dive Center. They work together on several programs. I'd start at PVD for a couple of days and then switch to JDC to finish out your week. Both will help you with gear for BHB. What ever you decide, better book FAST because some of those days are already near Full (fri).

 

[scubadada]

Hi @jf3193

I find Boynton Beach, Jupiter and West Palm quite complimentary and dive all three Back in the high life, part 3

You may need to be flexible in your plans as seas are more variable in late fall and winter. Boynton Beach Inlet is least forgiving in big seas, West Palm the most. Pura Vida and JDC both put a guide in the water, none of the operators in Boynton Beach do.

Enjoy your visit