JANUARY 8, 2011

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on white box in upper right corner for better pics and an easier read; all rights reserved):

Finally had relatively flat seas today; but, the visibility was not great — maybe 30 feet of cloudy water.  The bottom temps. dropped to 68 degrees on the 60 foot reefs; but, at least there was not a cloud in the sky!  Virtually no current, which means we had to kick everywhere — we burned a lot of calories today.

We had some rookies on the boat so we headed to the shallow reefs to the south: The Trench and Breaker’s Reef/Turtle Mound.  We heard the visibility was not very good to the north, and, we had not been south in many weeks, so it was an acceptable dive plan.

Although the water visibility was not great at 30 feet, it was cloudy water as opposed to water filled with particles; the latter makes for messy photographs.

We ran into numerous Nurse Sharks, including one resting along side a Goliath Grouper.  Also, ran into several turtles; the big male Loggerheads are starting to hang out on the reefs — mating season is about to commence.

All things considered, not a bad day of diving.  I think next weekend will be much better, however.

DECEMBER 31, 2010 — JANUARY 1, 2011

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on white box in upper right corner for better read and pics; all rights reserved):

A pretty damn good holiday weekend of diving in West Palm Beach, assuming one could tolerate the rough seas.  Winds out of the east or south usually blow in beautifully blue water to Palm Beach County; this weekend was no exception to the rule. 

A nice end to the 2010 year of diving and an equally nice beginning to the 2011 diving year.

The seas were rough: 6 to 8 footers.  But, the visibility was 60 to 100 feet per dive; the bottom temps. are still 72 degrees; Friday we had mild to strong current; and, Saturday we had very little current.  Plenty of sunshine on Saturday, but not much at all on Friday.

Due to the rough seas, we stayed close to the inlet and dove The Corridor, North Doubles, and South Doubles. 

The waters were filled with turtles, goliaths, and nurse sharks.  We even saw a Ridley Turtle; this is the second one spotted in the last 3 weeks.  That is a good sign that they are making a comeback in this area.  In the past, I probably went entire years without ever seeing a Ridley; now I am seeing 3 to 4 per year.

Most of the turtles were Loggerheads.  Mating season is right around the corner; the big males are starting to appear.  A couple of Leatherbacks were spotted on the surface — I still have never seen one under water.

Hopefully, 2011 will be as good a diving year as 2010.

DECEMBER 18, 2010

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on white box in upper right corner for better images; all rights reserved):

Where in the world other than Palm Beach County can one see a Loggerhead, Green, Hawksbill, and Ridley turtle all on the same dive?  I do not believe there is another place; and, if there is, could someone please tell me so that I can dive there.

We do not see Ridleys that often in Palm Beach County; but, they are becoming more common.  As seen from this photo, the shell of a Ridley is circular.  Compared to the other turtles that are common in Palm Beach County — Loggerheads, Hawksbills, and Greens — Ridleys are very noticeable and easily stand-out as distinguishable from the other turtles due to their circular shells and lighter colored shells; you will know one when you see one.

The diving today was not bad under the water; but above the water it was rough.  The seas ranged from 3 to 8 feet and the waves were close together — it was a sloppy and ugly day on the surface.  No sunshine, and a strong rain storm rolled over while we were under on the second dive.

The visibility was probably 60 to 80 feet, but due to the lack of sunshine and dark skies, at times we probably could only see 20 feet.   The water temps. are still 72 to 73 degrees.  We had strong currents running to the north on The Corridor and North Double Ledges.

A lot of turtles were out; and, for the firt time, we saw a Caribbean Reef Shark inside the Amarylis — never seen that before.  As usual, several Goliaths on the Corridor.

Not a bad day of diving under the water; but, ugly on the surface.

DECEMBER 9 and 11, 2010

DIVE REPORTS: Crystal River and West Palm Beach (click on pic for better and larger image; all rights reserved)

Snorkled with Bird’s Underwater in Crystal River on the 9th.  The early cold front has brought many manatees to the spring areas already.  Had a great time! 

The visibility was not great; but, there were pockets of very nice water.  There were probably at least 20 to 30 manatees, perhaps as many as 40.  But, only about 5 to 7 that regularly interacted with the humans. 

As anyone who has snorkeled with the manatees knows, some of them will not leave you alone and demand that you scratch their chins and bellies.  Thinking about going back next week when the colder cold front moves through.

Another great December Saturday of diving in West Palm Beach: flat seas, sunshine, 60 to 100 feet of visibility, 72 to 75 degree water temps, and a slight southern current.  Again, not too many days like this in December — we have been getting lucky.

Ran into several turtles: greens and loggerheads.  Apparently, we have a new resident green turtle on Shark Canyon.  This is the second consecutive week we have seen this turtle.  It has a small white spot on its second right shell “plate” and on its left front flipper.  Thus, this turtle is known as “spot.”

Spot is very friendly; it comes right to the camera and sticks his head in the dome of the camera.  It will be interesting to see how long he/she hangs around and whether Palm Beach County will be an annual stopping grounds. 

The caribbean reef sharks were also playful again.  Ran into 4 reefies, but could not get one to come close for a picture.

DECEMBER 4, 2010

DIVE REPORT: WEST PALM BEACH (click on pic for larger and better image; all rights reserved)

The sharks were playful today!!! 

We awoke to cold air temps in the 50’s.  Not much wind though, and there was not a cloud in the sky.  The seas were relatively flat at 1 to 2 feet and they got flatter as the morning progressed.  The bottom temps were 73 to 75 degrees.

We headed north out of the inlet to one of the best dive sites in the state of Florida: Shark Canyon.  The sharks were there and playful.  We were circled by 3 to 4 Caribbean Reef Sharks, one small shark came in very close and provided some good photo ops.

Shark Canyon is also home to many turtles, including some beautiful Green Turtles; and, a couple big resident Goliaths.  We ran into Green, Hawksbill, and Loggerhead Turtles all on the same dive — where else in the world does that happen??? 

The vis was a very nice 60 to 80 feet and not many particles in the water.  A great dive!!!

The second dive we headed to South Double Ledges/Secret Spot.  This is a beautiful dive site with numerous ledges and undercuts.  But, we did not see much: one nurse shark; some of the other divers spotted a large Loggerhead Turtle.

The vis was much better: easily 80 feet with no particles.

We should have  stayed out on the water all day; it was not very cold at all and the water was beautifully blue and flat.  Not too many days in December are like that.

NOVEMBER 6, 2010

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on pic for better and larger image; all rights reserved)

Finally, a dive report.  I’ve been sick and busy.

This week, the visibility was poor at 20 feet and a lot of particles in the water.  We had our first real cold front come through also; air temps in the high 40’s when we left the dock.  Winter is upon us.  But, that just made the 78 degree water feel like a hot tub!

The weathermen screwed up the forecast for the second consecutive week; they predicted 6 to 10 foot seas, but we probably had at most 3 to 4 and the prior week it was a rather flat 2 to 3.

Although the vis was poor, we did have some nice encounters with Caribbean Reef Sharks and Goliaths.

We had probably at least 15 Goliaths on a shipwreck and they were playful today, not shy at all. 

All things considered, it was not a bad day of diving at all!!!

OCTOBER 9, 2010

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on pic for better and larger image; all rights reserved)

Believe it or not, damn good diving yesterday!  We had strong winds all week that created turbulent seas that tore apart the beaches; but, there was a pocket of crystal clear blue water out there. 

By Saturday morning, the strong winds had ceased.  The seas were flat as a pancake.  But, we had heard the visibility was horrible — 5 to 10 feet — due to the strong winds and turbulent waters all week. 

Just outside the inlet, however, sat a pocket of crystal clear blue water.  A little north or south of the pocket and the visibility was horrible.   Accordingly, we did two dives in the nice blue water.  The bottom temp. was 82 degrees; no current whatsoever; about 70 to 100 feet of visibility; and, not a cloud in the sky!

We dropped on a shipwreck that was loaded with lionfish — they were everywhere!  On the second dive, we dropped on a shipwreck that had a large baitball on it, with a Goliath Grouper in the middle of it.  Baitballs are a great time under water; never know what is inside them and what will investigate the balls as food.  A shark swam by it, but it was too far away to get a good look; may have been a Lemon Shark.

A great day of diving on a day that I had assumed the worst due to the strong winds and turbulent waters all week.   Winter is approaching and this may have been the last weekend of flat seas for a while.

OCTOBER 2, 2010

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on pic for a better and larger image; all rights reserved, including copyright rights).

Great diving in WPB!!!  Flat seas, warm water (82 to 84 bottom temps), not a cloud in the sky, and pretty good visibility at 40 to 60 feet — no particles in the water.

We had a full boat, with several photographers.  We headed north out of the inlet to Shark Canyon.  It did not disappoint.  Although the sharks were not very “playful” today.  We ran into 4 Caribbean Reef Sharks; but, they just gave us one close pass and hovered on the visibility boundary.  They would not come close today.

We also ran into my favorite turtle — Barnacle.  This is a male Green Turtle who is very people friendly.  Unfortunately, it had a hook in its right flipper; but, my friend was able to remove it.  This turtle has been hanging out on the reefs of Palm Beach County for about 2 years now; it has doubled in size during those 2 years.

We also located the same white Frogfish that we saw last week.  It moved about 5 feet and it took me about 3 to 4 minutes to find it.  I had the right lens on this weekend and got some pretty good pictures.  These are mysterious fish and great subjects to photograph.

If I were not such a big college football fan, I would have stayed out all day to dive — it was that good.  Hopefully, next weekend will be just as good.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2010

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on pic for better and larger image; all rights reserved, including copyright rights)

Busy week, this report is late.

We had rough seas again; probably not as rough as the prior week.  But, the water was not anywhere near the spectacular and crystal clear water of the prior week. 

We decided to stay close to the inlet due to the perceived rough water.  The water, however, had a lot of particles in it.  Visibility was probably 30 to 60 at best; but, again, a lot of particles.  Not a good day at all for wide angle photography.  The water temps. are still warm at 82 to 84 degrees on the bottom.

It was a great day of diving, however, because I found a white frogfish!!!  Prior to that time, I had seen a red, orange, yellow, lime green, lavender, purple, black, striated, pygmy, and a frogfish that looked like a rock.  But, I had never seen a white frogfish.  This may have been the most beautiful frogfish I have ever seen.  It had bright red “toes” and red fringe on one of its fins.

Unfortunately, I had my 15mm fisheye lens with a full-frame sensor camera, which means I had to significantly crop the picture of the fish.  Thus, the picture is blurry and poor quality.

I hope to shoot the fish this coming weekend with the “proper” lens and get much better pictures.

SEPTEMBER 18, 2010

DIVE REPORT — WEST PALM BEACH (click on pic for a better and larger image; all rights reserved, including copyright rights)

Outrageous diving in West Palm Beach today — assuming you could tolerate the sloppy 3 to 6 foot seas.  Most of the dive boats cancelled due to the rough seas; so, we jumped on Jim Abernethy’s Deep O; only 5 divers.

The visibility was a staggering 100 to 150 feet; a very mild north current; 84 degrees bottom temps.; and, sunshine!!!  The rough seas kept the divers and boats off the water; but, whenever there are strong winds out of the east or south, that usually means beautifully blue water is blown in from the gulf stream; that is precisely what happended Saturday morning!!!

We battled the rough and sloppy seas and headed north out of the inlet to Juno Ledge and Shark Canyon.  Two of the best dive sites in the entire State of Florida.  The dives sites did not disappoint.  Incredible visibility revealed several sharks, turtles, goliaths, green morays, stingrays, and a lot of fish.  And, that was just the first dive at Juno Ledge.

The second dive was Shark Canyon and I have been diving this site for 8 years; but, I have never seen the sharks behave the way they did Saturday morning/afternoon.  Right when we jumped in the water, a shark was circling below us; the shark escorted us to the amphitheatre; at the amphitheatre, we were met by 5 to 7 other Caribbean Reef Sharks; we were circled the entire time by the sharks; we sat in the sand for 30 minutes and the sharks stayed the entire time.  At almost all times, we had 3 sharks in sight; sometimes we had 5 sharks in sight.

While sitting in the sand and being circled by the Caribbean Reef sharks, a Nurse Shark joined, two turtles joined, and a Goliath kept peeking over the ledge to see what all the commotion was about.   A truly amazing dive!!!  When we ran low on air and ascended to our safety stop, one of the Caribbean Reef Sharks followed us and circled below us for several minutes.   Again, never seen the sharks behave like this before.  Why can’t every dive be like this!!!