I finally got around to editing some of my pics from this dive to post here, so here they are along with my report.
Dive Op: First, I would definitely recommend Cpt. Bob and
Tanks-A-Lot Dive Charters. He helped make my first Gulf diving experience (well, except for a couple of times at the St. Andrews jetties up in the panhandle eons ago) a good one. The Can-Tank-Erous (great name!) is a clean boat and I had no problem with fumes. Be aware there's no dive shop adjacent to the dock, however, just a small bait shop.
General Gulf Notes: There were thunderstorms around us, but Cpt. Bob steered us between them, we only got a little drizzle directly on the boat. Water temps were warm, my computer logged a minimum 80 degrees. Even with the storms around us, the Gulf was flatter than a lake, and neither site had current to speak of. The Gulf is noticeably greener than the Atlantic and Keys sites I'm used to.
Dive #1: First dive was the Rube Allen artificial reef. This is basically a bunch of bridge pieces, concrete, culverts, etc. left over from a Tampa Bay area bridge that was remodelled. About 45' to the sand. Vis was awful. Well, vis was probably 20' or so, but there was just all this... crap... floating in the water, Made for some "starry" pics as the flash on my little Pentax Optio bounced off all of it (an external strobe would have helped... but only a little).
Life: I did see a cluster of three goliath groupers lurking under a big ledge of concrete, lots of bait fish with some smallish (to me - I'm used to the big ones off Jupiter) barracuda prowling around outside them. It is fascinating to watch them hunt: they sit so calmly, then strike like lightning! LOTS of small spiny urchins, and a sea cucumber. There were so many urchins, you had to be really careful if you got too close to any of the concrete - those spines will go right through neoprene. The bait fish were unbelievably thick - when they swarmed around you, all you could do is stop and stare at all the silvery flashes until they moved on, couldn't see anything else.
Dive #2: Our second dive was to the Blacktip natural ledge. Apprently this area was a prehistoric riverbed, and the river carved ledges into the surrounding stone. Vis here was great, I could not quite make out the boat from the sand at 55', but I could at 40'. Sun was coming through a beautiful pale green.
Life: Lots of arrow crabs and stone crabs. Swarms of fish again, some of these more typical reef-fish like I see on the Atlantic (sorry I'm still learning fish or I would name them). One goliath grouper, much larger than the three on the earlier dive (as big as a typical sofa). Glad I had my little dive light along to help peer into the crevices. Several very colorful small fish, all darting in, out, and around the holes in the ledges - overall everything here much more active and frisky than the artifical reef.
Comments: There were several students on these dives, working with their instructor, including a guy next to me getting his AOW cert (I had just received my AOW cert the weekend before, so I gave him one tip I learned: when doing your compass nav work, if you swim along an old iron wreck like the Copenhagen, don't expect your compass to actually point North
). Because of the calm seas, low currents, and modest depths, I can see where the Gulf would be a great place for checkout dives.
I did actually enjoy the longer boat ride out to the sites, gave me more of a chance to chat & socialize (typical Jupiter and WPB dives I just have time to deal with my gear and next thing you know we're there). But that extra motoring time means the dive costs a bit more, too.
Would I dive from Clearwater again? Certainly! But probably only if, like this time, I was already in the area for something else (a friend's party in this case). For me, it's about as far a drive to Clearwater as it is to Jupiter, and with the slightly lower cost and greater diversity of life, this photo cat just purrs in Jupiter. But yeah, I'd certainly like to visit more sites off the Tampa Bay area if the opportunity arises, or with the right company. I've heard there are some good wrecks worth checking out too, although it's the reef life that gets me purring, so based on this experience I would want to try more natural ledges.
Anyway, enjoy the pics, and see you in the water!
>*< Fritz
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