Where to dive in Florida?

[Daname27]

Hello all - I am looking to take a trip to Florida in February.

I am OWC.

I will be coming from Ohio & am open to suggestions. If you wanted to see the best the state has to offer...where would you go?

Thank you all for your time or consideration...

 

[Norrm]

The best diving in Florida (in fact in the entire US) is from Key West to Jupiter on the SE Florida coast..

Keys south of Islamorada don't have great reefs, but there are a handful of artificial wrecks. The upper Keys have better reefs and a larger assortment of wrecks, but know that most of the wrecks in the Keys are for AOW divers only although you might be able to pull off a guided dive on some wrecks if you've got recent deeper dives in your logbook.

Fort Lauderdale to Jupiter is mostly drift diving on wrecks and rocky reefs, there are no coral reefs north of Fort Lauderdale.

If you aren't AOW your options will be limited to reefs and the shallower wrecks no matter where you go in SE Florida. Your experience will be much better if you get your AOW and there are numerous places to get it done in SE Florida.

The winter months are touch and go- it's chilly for sure and when the wind blows through you can lose an entire dive week, as I expect will happen to me this week. Even when the weather is favorable it can be tricky to find a dive Op who has enough divers to make trips, especially during the week. My strategy is to book with a few and cancel outside the window to avoid cancelation fees, and stay with the Op that has enough to go.

 

[sportxlh]

For newer divers, Key Largo and Islamorada are both great places to dive. Lots and lots and lots of shallow reefs and a few shallow smaller wrecks. There are a few mid-depth reefs as well (60 feet) and a couple of deeper reefs (100 feet). The four deep wrecks are also relatively easy to dive (especially the Eagle and Spiegle Grove) if current isn't bad. As an experienced diver, I really enjoy going to the upper Keys for both the diving and because of the vacation vibe that permiates the area.... lots of tiki bars and restaurants. While driving over that final bridge to Key Largo, I can feel all of life's stress drain out of me!!!!! The History of Diving museum is also in the upper Keys and something fun to do if marine conditions don't allow diving.

I have family in the Jupiter area and dive there frequently when I'm back in the town. Its all drift diving, a bit more advanced but still much fun. The reefs aren't as pretty as they are in the upper Keys, but the likelihood of seeing large marine life is fairly high (sharks, goliath grouper, turtles, big green eels, etc.). If you want to see Lemon sharks, Feb is usually a good time to dive in Jupiter since they are migrating through and gather at a few sites that dive operators will go to regularly. In Jupiter, its helpful to be Nitrox certified since the depths will keep dives for air divers pretty short. Like Norrm said, AOW is also helpful.

A few operators I like:

Upper Keys: Conch Republic Divers, Quescensce, Rainbow Reef (particularly good for new divers since they put guides in with all divers)
Jupiter: Jupiter Dive Center

 

[iamrushman]

No one seemed to mention Blue Heron Bridge in Palm Beach County.... No A.O.W. needed there...check with the dive shops in the area for tides.

 

[drrich2]

It's so diverse you won't get a consensus. Someone who loves lush coral reef wall diving won't be impressed with Jupiter, but someone who loves big animals might be thrilled with the Goliath grouper aggregation in the Fall or lemon shark migration in the winter. But then ask a cave diver what he thinks rocks about Florida. Oh, but what does a spear fisherman think?

Let me show you 2 old trip reports of mine, one from Key Largo 2013, one from Jupiter 2014. Do a quick search on YouTube and watch a few videos of the destinations you're interested in, and consider what time of year you want to go.

I think a fairly new diver would be well-served by the diversity of the upper Florida Keys, with shallow reef diving with good sea life and the option to hit the deep wrecks. And once a diver has done enough coral reef diving that it starts to feel a little like 'Been there, done that,' and he wants to try something new, the big animals of the Jupiter area offer that.

Oh, speaking of the east coast and big animals, be aware of North Carolina diving. Offshore wreck diving with sand tiger sharks rocks!

Richard.

 

[sportxlh]

BHB is a great option. Only got one dive in there during 2019, when marine conditions washed out Jupiter, but had a spectacular dive. Sea horses, tropicals, little eels (moray and sharp tail) etc etc. It was fantastic. Rented tank and flag at Force E

 

[drrich2]

It’s worth mentioning Blue Heron Bridge is a once per day place due to coordinating with high tide, but a good side trip when you’re in Jupiter.

 

[Catito]

BHB is a great option. Only got one dive in there during 2019, when marine conditions washed out Jupiter, but had a spectacular dive. Sea horses, tropicals, little eels (moray and sharp tail) etc etc. It was fantastic. Rented tank and flag at Force E

Today saw two batfish, one frog fish, one jack knife fish, 3 eagle rays, and a juvenile spotted drum...plus all the “usuals”...morays, sting rays, parrot fish, etc. pretty incredible