Where is a good vacation spot for diving/other activities?

[Big-t-2538]

I highly recommend dives on the Sandusky and Barnum...both are great wooden wrecks and both are shallow enough that a single 80 diver can get 25 - 30 minutes BT on the wreck.

I need to get back up to the straits

 

[GLDiver]

yes the diving at tobermory is good. there's a couple of tugs in the harbor you can shore dive on, and most divers do at least one night dive on them. There's also the wall out at the lighthouse, limestone, filled with crawfish. all the other wrecks are boat dives and there are two dive shops running charters. Sites run from 20 feet to 150 feet. Most are big wooden steamers that came to grief on the rocks so they are lumber piles but fun lumber piles. The town has a nice boardwalk around the harbor with cool little stores, there's hiking and just general hanging around

http://www.tobermory.org/

 

[Lawman]

I'd vote for Tobermory. I just like the place and the wrecks and cave are easy to dive.

 

[Hardware]

Sanilac Shores preserve has many wrecks that are very nice. Most are around 70' to 100'. It is a little north of Pt. Huron. Not a whole lot other than the beach for the family. Check out www.fourfathoms.com for more info (LDS). The Straits has some nice wrecks as well (60' to 110') plus Mac Island. You can keep the family busy here. Check out www.stignace.com and www.straitsscuba.com (LDS) for more info. Be advised that the lakes conditions can change quickly and you may not be able to dive. Pt. Sanilac has an old dock shore dive. St. Ignace has a shore wreck dive, the CH Johnson, but you should get permission from the property owner first (you have to go through his yard to get to the water). I have dove both spots and the wrecks are great.

 

[dlevering]

Hello,
I would like to suggest western Lake Erie. Near Sandusky/Port Clinton,Ohio.
There are many family activities in the area. Cedar Point is known around the world as the amusement park with most roller coaster in the world.There is zoo in Toledo.There is a Dive in Port Clinton That has dive charters to wrecks on the lake. (New Wave Dive Shop) They have a Web site.Then the is always Cleveland. There are diving charters there also. Sandusky is about 1 hour from Toledo and Cleveland. It's about 20 minutes to Port Clinton.
Good diving,
Dave

 

[caymaniac]

I've dove off Alpena in the wreck preserve and had some of the best wreck diving but we were alittle deeper than you want to be.... at 120.
Also some of the best water clarity we've had has been at Tobemorey and there are plenty of wrecks. The problem is, not much to do for non-divers.
There are some wrecks I've been on with Scuba North out of Traverse City in the bays but they were'nt as good as Alpena or Tobemorey, however there is plenty for a non-diver to do and the Mac bridge and Mac Island is not too far away.
My solution: choose Traverse City, call Scuba North and arrange some dives, keep the family happy for now that way they won't complain about you leaving to dive. Maybe when your son gets alittle older he'll catch the diving bug and you won't have to worry about doing other stuff.
Of course there's some great wrecks in the Keys, and plenty to do in Florida for non-divers especially if you don't mind warm water!
Dive Safe,
Caymaniac

 

[diver_paula]

Also some of the best water clarity we've had has been at Tobemorey and there are plenty of wrecks. The problem is, not much to do for non-divers.

Dive Safe,
Caymaniac

I totally agree on the Traverse City / SCUBA North recommendation. However, I do want to say that there is a lot for families to do at Tobermory. The town is small but cute with lots of nice shops. Both high and low end pricing. A nice ice cream / candy shop. There are trails to hike, a glass bottom boat tour that includes a shallow, surprisingly intact wreck. There is the Flower Pot Island trip / hike. Nice beaches. The harbor gets some very nice boats docked for the night during the summer which can make for some phenomenal dream building.

And yes, the water is warmer in The Keys.

Paula

 

[RPanick]

One thing about being up north, is that distances are a lot further than they look on a map. So you might want to keep that in mind.

Traverse City has by far the most things to do, but can get crowded in the summer. Its a tourist trap after all. There are also some shore diving as well as the wrecks. The shore diving didn't sound too appealing, but I dive in quaries so what do I have to talk about. At least the visibility looked better.

Traverse City also has a neat little zoo, not far from the dunes, and actually has beaches. If you go there I would suggest making reservations early.

Mackinaw is very much a tourist trap, but the island is kind of neat.

Alpena has some very nice diving, but as far as I know its all boat diving. The town is very laid back, but there is some shopping and the favorite occupation seems to be relaxing.

Unless you like really cold water, you might want to consider July or August, unfortunately it seems that the vis drops from algae blooms. And if you are going to Superior, they define cold water and one very long drive. But very scenic.

Bob