south florida dive sites

"Grumman-581" <grumman581-YYYY-MM@charter.net> wrote in message
news:PUPQd.7908$yJ5.3191@fe07.lga...
> "Crownfield" wrote ...
>> tides act below the waterline, and winds act on the effective 'sail'
>> above the waterline. the resulting vector can be less than obvious.
>
> If it had just been tides, the line that I had attached between me and the
> boat would have probably dropped down at a more vertical angle... As it
> was,
> it was at a very shallow angle... Any shallower and I would have had to
> consider waterskiing instead... <grin> As such, I suspect that the wind
> was
> carrying the boat fairly rapidly and I was being dragged along in the
> process...
>
>

Does PADI have a specialty for that yet?

Thanks again for the info, the GPS I have is a new handheld, it can
recieve WAAS but I've only seen it lock onto a WAAS signal once, a
little south of the Hillsboro inlet. It sounds like I just need a
better book. I'll be picking up McAllister's book on the next trip,
hopefully I'll have some better luck with it.

On the discussion about the current, doesn't it vary with the position
of the gulf stream? I've seen on some days(according to noaa's website)
the gulf stream is 10+nm off shore, and others less than 1. I would
think this would attribute to a varying current from day to day, even
at the same location.

As for a depth finder, it sounds like just one of the GPS/Finder
integrated models would work, they're fairly inexpensive and are color.
Any recommendations for a sub-$1000 chartplotting gps? I was eyeing the
Garmin 172c or the Standard Horizon CP175c. I don't want a Lowrance.
I've owned 2 lowrance GPS's and they both locked up frequently.

I believe the wind-blown boat-towed water-ski dive would be a regional
class covered under the Distinctive Specialties section, which can be
applied toward one of the five certifications required for the Master
Scuba Diver rating. Due to the special nature of this specialty, there
is an additional $200 charge on top of the standard specialty cost.

Daniel

daniel wrote:

> On the discussion about the current, doesn't it vary with the position
> of the gulf stream? I've seen on some days(according to noaa's website)
> the gulf stream is 10+nm off shore, and others less than 1. I would
> think this would attribute to a varying current from day to day, even
> at the same location.

It's a little more complex than that.

The Gulf Stream is normally quite a ways out from the reefs, and
even from the deep wrecks. The effects we see are from a very
fast and powerful cold north current to the east (the Stream)
combined with a slower and weaker warm south current that runs
along the beach.

At the reefs, the prevailing current is north, influenced by the
west edge of the Stream. But west, east, and south currents are
common as huge eddies roll along the west edge of the Stream -
in fact it is not uncommon to see all four directions in a
single dive as the eddy rolls by.

Also, the Gulf Stream subducts around Cape Horn and doesn't rise
until north of the equator. On the deep wrecks, there is still
an upwelling of real cold water over the edge of the continental
shelf (which is close in here) giving screaming frigid currents,
even in September.

In July, those upwellings may push all the way into the reefs,
giving a 68 degree thermocline under 82 degrees surface water.
When it pushes in hard enough to top the reef (45-50') you can
actually see it flow like a waterfall down the inside of the reef.

So the currents are pretty much what they are when ya jump in,
and not really predictable.

m

Now that you mention it, I've observed the current changing during a
dive, I had previously chocked it up to my imagination, but that makes
sense. I've been diving on few of the deeper wrecks(~100') and noticed
the water was much colder on one side of the wreck than the other, I
guess that explains it, but it seemed to be more of a vertical
thermocline(ie east/west) than a horizontal(up/down) one. I'd like to
observe the thermocline waterfall effect you are describing, where do
you think would be the best time and place to catch this?

"daniel" <daniel@uwcorp.net> wrote in message
news:1108680715.573372.303300@o13g2000cwo.googlegr oups.com...
> Now that you mention it, I've observed the current changing during a
> dive, I had previously chocked it up to my imagination, but that makes
> sense. I've been diving on few of the deeper wrecks(~100') and noticed
> the water was much colder on one side of the wreck than the other, I
> guess that explains it, but it seemed to be more of a vertical
> thermocline(ie east/west) than a horizontal(up/down) one. I'd like to
> observe the thermocline waterfall effect you are describing, where do
> you think would be the best time and place to catch this?

If you notice that the waterfall is yellow, be careful. It could just be a
diver above you taking a leak.

The current off of FLL and Pompano are more related to tidal activity
than the eddies of the gulfstream. They are N or S 99% of the time.
We hit the Vitali AKA Tracy N26 09.573 W80 04.769 (Just north of the
Scutti) last night on a twighlight/night dive... vis as only 50' plus as
the sun was setting. Current was not bad at about 1.5 kts flowing
NORTH. This dive is about 10 years newer than the scutti and a bit
larger with very large swim throughs (for those qualified) THe numbers
will put you on the wheelhouse if you have WAAS or diff. Just find it on
the DF go up current about 50-100 ft and drop anchor


daniel wrote:
> Thanks again for the info, the GPS I have is a new handheld, it can
> recieve WAAS but I've only seen it lock onto a WAAS signal once, a
> little south of the Hillsboro inlet. It sounds like I just need a
> better book. I'll be picking up McAllister's book on the next trip,
> hopefully I'll have some better luck with it.
>
> On the discussion about the current, doesn't it vary with the position
> of the gulf stream? I've seen on some days(according to noaa's website)
> the gulf stream is 10+nm off shore, and others less than 1. I would
> think this would attribute to a varying current from day to day, even
> at the same location.
>
> As for a depth finder, it sounds like just one of the GPS/Finder
> integrated models would work, they're fairly inexpensive and are color.
> Any recommendations for a sub-$1000 chartplotting gps? I was eyeing the
> Garmin 172c or the Standard Horizon CP175c. I don't want a Lowrance.
> I've owned 2 lowrance GPS's and they both locked up frequently.
>
> I believe the wind-blown boat-towed water-ski dive would be a regional
> class covered under the Distinctive Specialties section, which can be
> applied toward one of the five certifications required for the Master
> Scuba Diver rating. Due to the special nature of this specialty, there
> is an additional $200 charge on top of the standard specialty cost.
>
> Daniel
>

On Thu, 17 Feb 2005 16:04:14 -0800, "Greg Mossman" <mossman@qnet.com>
wrote:

>"daniel" <daniel@uwcorp.net> wrote in message
>news:1108680715.573372.303300@o13g2000cwo.googleg roups.com...
>> Now that you mention it, I've observed the current changing during a
>> dive, I had previously chocked it up to my imagination, but that makes
>> sense. I've been diving on few of the deeper wrecks(~100') and noticed
>> the water was much colder on one side of the wreck than the other, I
>> guess that explains it, but it seemed to be more of a vertical
>> thermocline(ie east/west) than a horizontal(up/down) one. I'd like to
>> observe the thermocline waterfall effect you are describing, where do
>> you think would be the best time and place to catch this?
>
>If you notice that the waterfall is yellow, be careful. It could just be a
>diver above you taking a leak.
>
That would tend to go up, even the warm Florida waters.

JF

"JOF" <johnfrancis@sympatic.ca> wrote in message
news:ojja1159ie6e4sg0lh8l56itd4lib599ka@4ax.com...

> That would tend to go up, even the warm Florida waters.

I believe urine is denser than water so it would sink. But I admit never
having tested urine density. When I pee in the toilet, the entire bowl
turns yellow. There's never any stratification due to the high velocity
mixing. I suppose if I could pee slowly enough, or drizzle it over a spoon
like a bartender fixing a Black & Tan, that I could prove or disprove my
theory. Maybe I'll experiment this weekend, if I can get Grumman to hold
the spoon still.

"daniel" wrote

> Thanks again for the info, the GPS I have is a new handheld, it can
> recieve WAAS but I've only seen it lock onto a WAAS signal once, a
> little south of the Hillsboro inlet. It sounds like I just need a
> better book. I'll be picking up McAllister's book on the next trip,
> hopefully I'll have some better luck with it.

If your GPS is WAAS capable, it should receive a WAAS signal anywhere in S.
Florida. It sounds to me like you have a problem with your GPS. What model
is it?

> On the discussion about the current, doesn't it vary with the position
> of the gulf stream? I've seen on some days(according to noaa's website)
> the gulf stream is 10+nm off shore, and others less than 1. I would
> think this would attribute to a varying current from day to day, even
> at the same location.

Yes, but it's not that simple. The Gulf Stream throws off circular eddies.
More often than not, it is the eddies that are responsible for the current.
This means that the current can be very unpredictable, sometime changing
during a dive and, at various times, coming from pretty much any point of
the compass.

> As for a depth finder, it sounds like just one of the GPS/Finder
> integrated models would work, they're fairly inexpensive and are color.
> Any recommendations for a sub-$1000 chartplotting gps? I was eyeing the
> Garmin 172c or the Standard Horizon CP175c. I don't want a Lowrance.
> I've owned 2 lowrance GPS's and they both locked up frequently.

Every GPS I own is a Garmin. Some of them are not real expensive, but some
are. The combination unit on my 32 footer is in the $3,000 range. You can
buy separate units, one for depth and one for GPS for a lot less.

> I believe the wind-blown boat-towed water-ski dive would be a regional
> class covered under the Distinctive Specialties section, which can be
> applied toward one of the five certifications required for the Master
> Scuba Diver rating. Due to the special nature of this specialty, there
> is an additional $200 charge on top of the standard specialty cost.

.. . . and you have to provide the boat.

Lee

"Greg Mossman" wrote ...
> Maybe I'll experiment this weekend, if I can get Grumman to hold
> the spoon still.

We're talking about this type of spoon, right?
http://www.epromos.com/OrderPipeline/ProductPage.jhtml;$sessionid$FNH2X5AAAFFJLQFIVDJSF EQ?productId=8815660&categoryId=1910
http://www.striper.net/images/lures/reflecto_spoon.jpg
http://www.acmetackle.com/scripts/fiordspoon.html
http://store1.yimg.com/I/psfishing_1832_3137216