Stage One & Bridge Span 14 09/16/2006

[Rick Murchison]

Seas were near flat all the way from the St. Andrews Jetties out to Stage One, the remains of a research station that rises from the 110' bottom to about 60', where its derrick-like legs were blown off, leaving the upper structure piled like pickup sticks below.
The water was bathing-suit warm all the way to the bottom; visibility was somewhat limited there, but near 50 to 70 feet near the top of the structure, where swarms of Angelfish forraged among the sponges and soft corals...

These are mostly Blue Angels, with the occasional Queen or even the Blue/Queen Townsend hybrid

A most enjoyable dive...
Rick

 

[JKSteger]

I know what you mean, a group of us Lake Lanier Looney Birds dove Stage One on Sat. too.

Jeremy

 

[Rick Murchison]

There were 14 cantilevered spans to the old Hathaway Bridge connecting Panama City and Panama City Beach which were hauled out and sunk as artificial reefs (I think about 1980). Span 14 rises from the sand at 80’ to about 40’ at the top of its superstructure, where the crisscrossed steel beams provide excellent habitat for a wide variety of critters.
After our dive at Stage One we motored back in to Span 14 for a relaxed surface interval before our night dive there; it was a positively lovely sunset.
Hitting the water at “first dark,” the first divers down saw a Jewfish (I missed it ). Later several others saw a nice turtle (I missed that too )
But it was a wonderful dive with lots of interesting critters nonetheless…
The toadfish were out in force

I spotted a young Scrawled Filefish

And several “undressed” decorator crabs

After an hour just enjoying the critters doing their “night moves” we reluctantly surfaced for the boat ride back in, topping the evening off with steaks and seafood at the Black Angus
It just doesn’t get much better than that!
Rick

 

[seadoggirl]

Beautiful pictures Rick. Thanks so much

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

Great reports and pictures!

 

[tom wicker]

Awesome as always Rick I do enjoy your photography.

psst dont tell anyone but I picked up me a camera for underwater to give this type of photography a try

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

What'dya get?????

 

[jviehe]

Seas were near flat all the way from the St. Andrews Jetties out to Stage One, the remains of a research station that rises from the 110' bottom to about 60', where its derrick-like legs were blown off, leaving the upper structure piled like pickup sticks below.
The water was bathing-suit warm all the way to the bottom; visibility was somewhat limited there, but near 50 to 70 feet near the top of the structure, where swarms of Angelfish forraged among the sponges and soft corals...

A most enjoyable dive...
Rick

Did you have as much trouble navigating stage 1 as I did? That thing is huge and it all looks the same. Here is some video I took when I first dove it.

http://northfloridadiver.net/media/movies/stage1-1.wmv

 

[Rick Murchison]

Did you have as much trouble navigating stage 1 as I did? That thing is huge and it all looks the same. Here is some video I took when I first dove it.

http://northfloridadiver.net/media/movies/stage1-1.wmv

Hmmm... hmmm... how to put this....
Nope.
Never been lost on Stage One...
Been temporarily disoriented for a half hour or so, three or two times, but never lost
Rick

 

[PhilEllis]

Rick, those are great pictures! I am impressed. Thanks for the entertainment.

Phil Ellis