Where to dive in Jupiter/W. Palm area?

[crvettel]

Hey Everyone,
I am working in Jupiter, Fl for a few weeks and was wondering if anyone out there could recommend some good places to dive in the Jupiter/W. Palm Beach area.
Thanks!

 

[djtimmy77]

Dive both areas...

Jupiter:
Blue Tang
Emerald
Jupiter Dive Center

West Palm:
Narcosis
Little Deeper
Wetter the Better
JASA

Also worth a trip to:
Boynton
UNDERWATER EXPLORERS

 

[Dr. Doug Ebersole]

If you have only "0-24 dives" as your profile states, please be aware that the diving in West Palm/Jupiter is drift diving. It would be advisable to have a safety sausage and be comfortable with your weighting in salt water, etc. Also (this next statement is debatable here on Scubaboard) but in my opinion Jupiter is a little more "advanced" diving than West Palm because, in general, the depths are a little deeper so nitrox is more beneficial, your gas consumption is higher, etc. If you have not done much drift diving or diving in general, I would recommend starting with West Palm requesting something along the Breaker's reef as it is relatively shallow and has lots or marine life. I agree with all of the operators mentioned by djtimmy77 above. My personal favorite is JASA (Bahamas & Palm Beach, Florida Scuba Diving :: Jim Abernethy's Scuba Adventures), but all of them are EXCELLENT.

Just my 2 cents after 35 years of diving in Florida

Doug

 

[Scott L]

What he said. Plus: The Breakers Reef, Horseshoe Reef and Paul's Reef all in the same area are all under 60ft and should be on every diver's list regardless of depth due to their beautifull coral and marine life....

 

[DiverDean59]

Do you have as much of a chance of seeing some of the bigger marine life in West Palm? I thought I had made my mind up to dive Jupiter because my son would like to see some of the sharks that Jupiter offers, but after reading so of the posts that Jupiter may be more advanced, I am torn. We have just over 60 dives and most all ocean diving has been in the Key Largo area. We both are diving air. I realize bottom time would be less but may be worth it just to see some of the bigger marine life. Thoughts and opinions would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks in advance.

 

[Scott L]

Do you have as much of a chance of seeing some of the bigger marine life in West Palm? I thought I had made my mind up to dive Jupiter because my son would like to see some of the sharks that Jupiter offers, but after reading so of the posts that Jupiter may be more advanced, I am torn. We have just over 60 dives and most all ocean diving has been in the Key Largo area. We both are diving air. I realize bottom time would be less but may be worth it just to see some of the bigger marine life. Thoughts and opinions would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks in advance.

At the moment the Jupiter area has West Palm area beat with the annual lemon shark aggregation still taking place although this is winding down rather quickly. Jupiter Dive Center would be the most appropriate operator for you both as they visit more shallow sites then the other Jupiter operators (60-90ft range). The other operators in Jupiter are more spearfish/lobster hunting oriented routinely visiting sites in excess of 100ft. The diving in West Palm Beach is very similar to Jupiter with South Doubles and the Juno Caves being amoung my favorite sites. I highly recomend acquiring your nitrox certifications before visiting. It's only a 2-3 hour classroom session....Have fun!

 

[Ron Parker]

On 19 Feb 2010, 0500 Dive Buddy Todd and I made the drive from Tampa to dive out of Jupiter Dive Center, aboard Republic IV, crewed by Capt Mike, with Dive Masters Chris, Doug, and Jeff. Boat accommodated 20+ divers, but only six were on board. Made three tank dives, all on Nitrox. Capt Mike and the DMs were awesome in selecting dive sites with 80+ viz. Water temp was a constant 71 at depth. Dove the Wrecks to 96ft, Ledge to 94ft and Tunnels to 78ft. Descending on each dive we could see lots of sharks, large turtles and Goliath Groupers waiting our arrival. What a photo/video opportunity this was. Large animals on each dive and diving ettiquett at it's best. Like Arnold , We'll be back".

 

[Token]

I did my OW certification out of the Jupiter Dive Centre last November [Hi Ham Mason!].

Although Jupiter's offshore dives are pretty advanced [deep water and currents] there are lots of places in the area that are easier. The river estuaries are pretty shallow, and there are still interesting things to see, as long as the bottom isn't stirred up too much. I'm sure any of the area dive shops [there are lots] can give you directions to shore dive locations.