Visiting Arizona, Dive Baja or Ca?

[engdiver]

I am planning on visiting relatives in Casa Grande, AZ during the hoildays. Are there any good dive spots within a days drive of there. I was thinking of the Baja or the Southern California area. I have never dove this area of the country before. Any suggestions on where to go? Wetsuit or Drysuit, etc. I am looking for more advanced dives but not technical.

Thanks

 

[broncobowsher]

Casa Grande is at one end of I8, San Diego is at the other end.
Depends on what you want to do and see. If you want to go to Mexico or not. Any other activities you may want to partake in while on vacation. in other worlds, personal preference.

The Yukon, few other wrecks and kelp are available in San Diego along with a decent maritime meuseum and other touristy attractions.

 

[bluesbro1982]

During the holidays the water gets fairly cold, so if going on a boat and you are trained and doing multiple dives, drysuit if it is convenient for you. A 7mm fullsuit with hooded vest will see you through fine, though. Beach diving la jolla shores is always a nice excursion, and there are several boats that go out to wreck alley with the yukon wreck dive offered. The yukon is a nice advanced dive, and even beach diving la jolla canyon you can go pretty deep.

It is also lobster season at that time, so if you feel like shelling out for a CA fishing license with ocean stamp (~$40 I think), the bag limit is 5 per day to bring back home to your relatives in AZ, best to catch them at night.

Going to mexico is OK, la bufadora is about a day's drive, but if coming from AZ and you only have a day, I dont think MX is a good idea simply because the drive will be insanely difficult to manage during the holidays on a limited schedule. Border crossing waits at San Ysidro AVERAGE over an hour. In Otay Mesa (farther east SD county) it is a bit less, but it is still a lot to go through for a dive. San Diego is probably your best bet.

PM me for more info, or check out www.divebums.com - they are a local SD dive group.

 

[diversteve]

Are there any good dive spots within a days drive of there.

All in the same day? If so there's Lake Pleasant just north of Phoenix. If you have your own gear you can get tanks at Sport Chalet just north of town. Even Sundays. Post in this forum for a local buddy when it gets closer.

We have these folks listed on our AZ diveshops list, don't know anything about them:

Casa Grande Dive Shop
112 E. Cottonwood Lane
Casa Grande, AZ 85222
(520) 836-9592

San Diego is about 6hrs. drive straight across on I8 - maybe 7 from C.G. You could dive Wreck Alley since your profile says you dive the Great Lakes wrecks. Most people from Phoenix make it a weekend trip. I'd bring the Drysuit...

The best Mexico option would be San Carlos near Guaymas. But it's about 6hrs. drive south and I don't think you can take a rental car over the border. The diving there kind of slows down in the winter also, most diveops here don't even go there much past October. More info at El Mar's website - they have a sister facility there.

You might also check with Ocean Planet Scuba, they run trips out out to San Diego. They're the most Tech focused shop here. They have a van with a trailer so you don't have to drive. Usually most trips from here leave Friday night and return Sunday late afternoon. You'll be 30-45mins. south of them, they're just south of Phoenix

 

[donooo]

Desert Divers in Tucson goes down to San Carlos pretty much every other weekend all year long. They have a trip on December 28th with four days of diving, check with them, they have an 800#. Maybe a ride.

adios don O

 

[engdiver]

Thanks,
All good info on the area diving. I will check with the local dive shops when it gets closer to traveling there.
I am also curious about Lake Meade. Is their any good diving there besides the B-29 bomber (which I think is a technical dive).

 

[diversteve]

The B29 is a tech dive. It's also $450. www.divetheb29.com

 

[bluesbro1982]

Thanks,
All good info on the area diving. I will check with the local dive shops when it gets closer to traveling there.
I am also curious about Lake Meade. Is their any good diving there besides the B-29 bomber (which I think is a technical dive).

From what I hear, unless we get 3 more years of drought and the reservoir falls off a bit more, everything that is really interesting is a tech dive, and the vis is unpredictable but usually bad. Unless you really want to go to Vegas for its more notable "attractions," I'd say head down to Cali - We'll treat you right as far as diving goes.

 

[shark.byte.usa]

san diego is your best bet for good diving. You could leave early am be in SD (350 miles) around midday jump on an afternoon boat out to the wrecks, spend the night, jump on a morning boat back out to the wrecks or kelp or whatever, be back in Casa Grande by early evening. 2 days minimum... [Advisory: The drive to an more importantly from SD on I-8 takes you over a pass with altitude reaching around 5,000 ft., it's done all the time by local divers, but just something you should know and decide for yourself. Going around up through the pass at Indio (just over 2,000ft) and taking I-10 will add 2-3 hours to your drive time home if you opt to go around.]

Don't think about Mexico (San Carlos(Sea of Cortez) or La Bufadora(Baja/Pacific)) unless you have about 4 days to kill.

-Garrett

 

[bluesbro1982]

[Advisory: The drive to an more importantly from SD on I-8 takes you over a pass with altitude reaching around 5,000 ft., it's done all the time by local divers, but just something you should know and decide for yourself. Going around up through the pass at Indio (just over 2,000ft) and taking I-10 will add 2-3 hours to your drive time home if you opt to go around.]

Dang, totally forgot about that. Props to you shark! The route sharky suggests is I-15 Northbound to the 215 to the 10 if you wanted to get around the altitude jump... but as sharkbyte says, you'll have at least 5 hours of offgassing before you hit the pass on I-8, and as long as there is no traffic you'll be over the summit and descending in about an hour. I-15 northbound is also a total PITA during afternoon rush hour all the way up through temecula.