jokeborn:
We're headed down to West Palm next weekend. Has anyone gone there since our visits from the weather? How is the vis right now down there? Thanks.
Our Dive's at West Palm beach, 10/09-10/10
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just wanted to give some of the dive conditions for WPB for the weekend of 10/09-10/10.
We droped in at Blue Herion Bridge, about 8am,with our 21' Angler,and set out for a weekend of diving at WPB. After going through the inlet, and not seeing any clear gulf water, we headed south, all along the beach, searching for the clear gulf water's. After not seeing any, and driving around in 3-5' sea's, which were about 8 sec apart, so all though they were mostley in the 4' range, it was mostley roll's.
We decided to put our first set of 2 diver's in at Flower Garden, which is 4 and 1/4 miles out of the inlet due south, and wtached them go down into the murkey dark water's. After an hour, i picked them up, and couldn't belive they were telling it was clear on the bottom!!!
Next was my turn with my dive buddy, so we set up on Breaker's reef, and they droped us in. I decesended down, thyinking to myself there was no way it was clear on the bottom, and about 30' down as i descended, all of the sudden it cleared up!! I got to the bottom, looked up at this weird green murky water above me, and couldn't belive i was in West Palm Beach, being used to one of the best dive site's in the world.
Vis was about 30'-35' at the bottom, water temp's were 83 degree's all day, all though it was alittle colder on the descend. It was a weird , calm feeling, there were no diver's around but us, only 1 dive boat i saw out all day was deep Obesion, and it was a weird feeling as i dove over the once beautiful reef that was now badley battered after the storm. The few fish that were there,were coming out to greet us as if they too were happy to see diver's back diving down there, as if they were all confused as well, as they swam over the sand blasted reef once known as Breaker's.
Everything has changed down there, even the trench which had about a 10' trench running through the ocean floor, was badley beaten up. All you saw were broken fan's and plant's actualley ripped out with there root's still attached, sand all over the reef on top of everything, and all the thing's that were lost by diver's, covered with sand, now laying out on the ocean floor, as the reef's were hit by 40+ waves as the storm's came ashore.
It was a great weekend diving, there were more private boat's out diving then charter's from what we could see, down let the green murkey water's fool you, cause under it all is all the reef's trying to show there beautiful color's, as the sun tries to shine on them through the murky layer on top. We were going to do a night dive, but got tired, so we quite around 5pm sat afternoon, and just missing Donclaypool as he saw us trailering my 21' Angler pulling into Diver's Direct, dam!!
So if your thinking about diving at WPB, go for it, water temps are great, vis is good at the bottom, we saw a group of about 15 Angle's, fish were scattered, but there, it was like they were hiding in the reef's at the ledge's, but curious to come out to see us and happy to see us back!!
We will be heading down to the Key's to dive towards the end of oct, if anyone plans on heading down and has a boat, drop me a pm, and well get togehter !!!
Thanks again, Fltekdiver