Suggestions for a Panhandle trip

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BioLogic

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Hi folks,

Sabbath999 and I are hoping to do some diving in the panhandle of Florida next week. I was hoping for some site suggestions.

We're cavern certified and had in mind some dives where we blow the first 1/3 of the tanks in the cavern, then burn off the rest taking pictures in whatever other water is available.

We're open to doing some shore diving as well. We'd need sites that were pretty friendly, since we have no experience with either shore diving in the ocean or ocean navigation; and have limited experience in current. (I'm guessing it's pretty different from quarries and lakes.) However, we're not very easily bored -- these habitats are all new to us after all.

Thanks for any thoughts,

Jeanne
 
I like the jetties at St. Andrews in Panama City. Dive an hour or two before high tide for the best viz, and currents are usually kind, if not, there is plenty to hold on to. Park entrance is $8 per vehicle, and there are usually folks diving every weekend.

Second choice would be Ft. Pickens, but it can get tougher if you don't know your way around underwater.
 
Morrison Springs just south of Ponce De Leon !! It's free, but try and get there early for the best viz!!!
 
Ditto on St. Andrews and do heed Hetland's advise. My wife thumbed a dive shortly after crossing over the jetties when I mis-read the tides and we caught a strong falling tide. It wasn't funny when she was climbing back over the rocks to keep from being swept out to sea (her words....).

Perhaps this is a good spin to the topic; What's the best/cheapest recommendation for lodging? We're tossing around the idea of camping at St. Andrews or looking for an inexpensive hotel/condo/other for our trip sometime between Aug 11-25th.
 
Scroll down to the bottom of this page for a list of the panhandle springs, then click on each of them to find out more information - Florida Freshwater Springs.

And on this page is information on the jetties in Panama City Beach and Destin - Florida Panhandle Gulf Coast.
 
Check the tides here at the NOAA tide website for the FL Gulf coast:
Tidal Station Locations and Ranges
Many of the days next week look o.k. (high tides during the day), but starting Friday the 13th the high tides are at night, which is obviously no good unless you want to do a night dive.
This is one of the problems with the jetties. They are just about the only place for a shore dive, but are dependent on the timing of the tides. If high tide falls at night (which it frequently does in August, Sept. and Oct.), you are out of luck.
 
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You're cavern certified? Morrison, Cypress, Jackson Blue, ShangriLa, Twin would all be great dives.

If you want to play in the salt, Destin Jetties is great. St Andrews and Fort Pickens are good too.
 
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