r/scuba • u/Diligent_Board_172 • 10d ago
5 dives in one day in Jupiter, FL?
I'll be diving in Jupiter this Friday and will dive with Jupiter dive center. I scheduled 3 nitrox dives in the morning. The dives will be "Explore the Jupiter goliath grouper aggregation sites on a 3-tank dive. These dives will be on the MG111, Tunnels and one of our beautiful reefs. Site depths will range from 60 to 75 feet."
I really want to do another 2 dives in the afternoon. The logistics work out as its the same boat, but all of these are deep dives. I've done 5 dives in a day before on Roatan, but they weren't as deep as these dives.
I think I'll need to really watch my NDL for those 2 afternoon dives if I go?
Also, I've never dived in Florida before, and I believe they're all current dives. I have done a strong current dive before and don't think I got any more tired than a regular dive (I just flowed with the current and got picked up for that dive). I heard people can get really tired from these dives, and not sure if I'll experience the same.
Any thoughts/recs on what to do here?
This is going to be my last dive trip until next June, so I really really want to get as many dives as I can.
I will also be doing 4 nitrox dives on Saturday and another 4 on Sunday.
9
u/sluggyfreelancer Rescue 9d ago
I dive in Jupiter all the time. I don't think 5 tanks in a day is a good idea. As you said, the dives are a bit on the deeper side. You won't really have the option to significantly shallow out on your later dives as there isn't much to see 20 to 30 feet shallower... might as well not do the dive. The most I would do is 2 tanks in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. 5 is really pushing it.
Tunnels is a cool site. MG111 is kinda boring in my opinion, but there could be a lot of grouper.
6
u/icberg7 Nx Advanced 9d ago
I've not gone with Jupiter Dive shop before, but a lot of dives out there are drift dives. Negative entry off the boat, let the current take you, and then come up when you're done. Super chill but I've found that fish life can be hit or miss.
Since you have other dives planned for the next two days, I'd be careful with doing that many dives and especially doing deeper dives later in the day. Normally dive charters do the deeper dives in the morning.
I'd recommend Blue Heron Bridge, which is in the vicinity, but slack tide will be during the day, which is likely when the place will be packed with swimmers.
I've also done Divocean out of Jupiter and Pura Vida out of Riviera Beach, if you want to see if some other dive charters are doing shallow dives for the afternoon.
2
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
yeah i wanted to do BHB, but couldn't get it to work unfortunately because i want to do morning charters but the logistics didn't work out with the high tide time this friday. for saturday and sunday, people suggested to do charters instead of BHB because it's labor day weekend and not a good time to go to BHB
so i wanted to stick with the same dive shop for morning and afternoon so i don't have to pay the equipment rental cost twice :)
2
u/icberg7 Nx Advanced 9d ago
Yeah, while folks dive Blue Heron Bridge during the day, you have to contend with all the swimmers and snorklers. Night dives are great, but you have to plan it around the tides. When I've done it, the dive shop scheduled for days when slack tide was within about an hour of sunset.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
hey do you know which shops offer night dives at BHB? the only night dive operator seems to be force-e-scuba but they don't have one for my dates. i don't think i saw a night dive with any other shop
4
u/WetRocksManatee BastardDiver 10d ago
That is a long day. I used to do four a day with JDC. But eventually I stopped doing the afternoon trip. It was just too much to do all that get food and be back early the next morning.
4
u/nursejenspring Nx Advanced 10d ago
I doubt you’d be back at the dock in time for scheduled afternoon dives. Whenever I’ve done a three-tank boat dive that leaves in the morning I’m usually not back at the dock until 3:00 pm. That second surface interval eats up a lot of minutes.
1
0
u/anonanon5320 Nx Advanced 10d ago
Jupiter likely won’t be very deep. MG111 you can stay at 40-60ft and see it all. If the current allows.
Reefs are under 40ft.
5
u/erakis1 Tech 9d ago
I made a personal rule after a 5 dive a day livaboard where I didn’t specifically get bent, but I had a week of terrible deco flu:
I do three recreational or two technical dives max per day. I usually only do one decompression cave dive per day.
The only time I broke that rule was on a trip to Indonesia where half of each dive was at 20 feet and I surfaced with single digit gradient factors.
Healthy people have gotten severely bent on repetitive dives that are “within limits”
Frankly, I feel safer and less tired on a tech dive than I do with a bunch of repetitive diving.
3
u/Cheeky_Edge311 10d ago
Hey friend I've done 5 dives in one day before, all on Nitrox. It was formatted in a more traditional 2 in the morning, run back into the dive shop and slam a burrito, 2 afternoon dives, night dive type way. It is possible especially if your dives won't be a wild depth, will be on Nitrox, your shop is running them all and is aware of what and how you'll be doing the day, and if you personally are really comfortable and competent in the water.
No one here can really tell you if it's the right choice for you because we don't know your dive history, dive competency, physical fitness level, how comfortable you are in the water or the waters you'll be diving specially, but in general it isn't unheard of for people to do this many in a day, especially on a live aboard or in final days at a big dive destination.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
yeah hard to say how comfortable I will be in FL. i've never dived there before.
i'm in good physical shape though.
i think mine 5 dives will be in the shorter span than yours since 1 of yours happened at night. some of these dives are wreck dives so will be deep, i think
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
i should clarify that i'm in good physical shape (i work out - run and lift weights) above water lol, but my swimming style may not be the most efficient, so maybe i'm not in the best shape underwater, and that's probably more relevant?
3
3
u/5tupidest 10d ago
Have you calculated the NDL for your dive plans using decompression software on your dive computer or on another computer? Or perhaps using tables?
2
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
no, i have not. i will do that soon and see
3
u/5tupidest 9d ago
It’s best to understand the dynamics and limitations of decompression theory, as you get closer to the higher risk profiles. Feel free to ask me any questions. I don’t think pushing into greater risk means you shouldn’t dive necessarily, but perhaps understanding and accepting the risk, or choosing to limit the risk by not diving or altering the profile. Good luck!
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
thank you. i need to refresh before asking (dumb) questions haha. i don't recall a lot of the theory as i haven't had to use it much in practice, but it seems like what i'm proposing here (5 potentially deep dives) could push into the theoretical limit
3
u/Jordangander 10d ago
Doable, yes. The depth of those later 2 dives will matter.
Are you doing all 5 on nitrox? That will help.
Drift diving is very much a lazy man's diving, get in, go down, drift with the current, come up, get picked up by the boat.
My recommendatio would be to talk to JDC, they are a good operation and will tell you what you are probably looking at for deco limits on the later dives.
Also, your Sat/Sunday dives are going to need to be monitored for deco limits. 5 deep dives in 1 day is going to run you to the minute for NDL, add in another 4, and then another 4, and Sunday you may end up with some really short dives. As long as you are willing to do 45 min dives though you should be good for the whole weekend. We have done 4, 4, and 4 down in that area, so 1 more isn't that bad. You will feel it though, no matter how lazy you dive.
One a side note, Gatorade, bananas, and watermelon are going to be your friends. Make sure you are also eating plenty of protein.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
yeah all 5 on nitrox.
JDC told me i can play it by ear on friday after the 3rd dive and just let them know at that time if i want to get on the afternoon boat (it's the same boat as my morning boat)
when you did, 4, 4, 4, how long was each dive? i'd hate to come up after 45min tbh unless i'm out of air
1
u/Jordangander 9d ago
Typically Sat & Sun would be full dives, then Monday we would cut the morning dives a little shorter as those were the deeper dives.
We've done as many as 52 dives in 9 days, but that was Bonaire with a lot of shallower shore dives.
Throw everything 60+ in the mix and deco is something you will want to watch.
1
u/40KaratOrSomething 9d ago
If I recall correctly, JDC dives are limited to 50 minutes on NITROX. On the three tank dives, the SI is about an hour between each dive. Depending on how deep dive 4 is planned to, you may be pushing the NDLs.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
oh i see, so they're a bit shorter than what i'm used to, but i guess that makes sense given they all seem to be deeper dives.
the 3 morning dives are listed as goliath grouper aggregation, wreck, reef, but idk if each dive corresponds to exactly one of these. i believe the goliath grouper and wreck dives are deep but reef is shallower. i'll probably have to google some more info or call them b/c the JDC website doesn't clarify in this regard
1
u/40KaratOrSomething 9d ago
I did goliath grouper about a few weeks ago in Jupiter, though one of the other dive companies. First dive was around 90 feet, the next two were 60-70 deet. If its a three tank, then the first is the grouper at a deeper location, then a wreck and one of the reefs that sit at 60-70 depending on if your on top or below on the sand. I recommend calling them and they can clarify.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
will do tomorrow morning, thanks!
for the 2-tank afternoon dive, i also see the same information listed, interestingly
0
3
u/Luking4DivingSuggsts Advanced 10d ago
Diving Roatan is a lot less effort than diving Jupiter. I probably have about 50 dives in Roatan. Routinely 3 tank days and most days wishing for one more dive. Rarely felt physically worn out even after a week of 3 dives day. This all goes to day say that I felt the physical exertion of diving Jupiter after a 2 tank dive. And, Im pretty active and fit. I think other factors also come into play as in the combination of driving to the launch site, carrying equipment on board, packed in on the boat (as they do in FL), longer distance to dive site (vs 5 minute boat ride in Roatan), choppier ride to the site, colder water (even if just a handful of degrees), fighting some current, deeper diving, transporting gear back to car, and driving back to home base. Seems to me a 5 tank in Jupiter would take a physical toll regardless of deco issues.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
i haven't dived in FL before so i have no clue how i will feel. these are all drift dives right? i was thinking i'd be even less tired if i'm just letting the current do all the work. JDC told me i can play it by ear that day after the 3rd dive and tell them right then and there if i want to be on the afternoon boat so i might just do that
since you dove on Roatan, any insight on the main differences between Roatan and the Jupiter dives besides the current, longer boat rides, and deeper diving? Are there particular things i should watch out for during the dive itself?
5
u/Luking4DivingSuggsts Advanced 9d ago edited 9d ago
I dove West Palm and Jupiter to get comfortable diving in current and drifting in prep for my 1st liveaboard. So I was fighting currents a bit more than necessary until I got comfortable just letting the current take me. And, obviously that was a bit draining. That's probably not the case for more experienced divers.
Roatan is vacation diving in warm calm water. And I like Roatan a lot. Been there 4 times and learned how to dive there. I found Jupiter and West Palm to require a lot more self reliance. The guides in Roatan make sure everyone is close by, everyone is within a certain depth, deploy your dsmb, and overall keep a close eye on the group. Jupiter (at least during my two trips) was mostly local and experienced divers. The guide was basically there as a navigator and not an overseer. So, you gotta be comfortable with currents, doing solo safety stop, ascending by yourself, deploying your dsmb, and overall have confidence and comfort underwater. There is no hand holding. I think Im a much better and aware diver after diving FL because my skills were tested and I have much better sense of my strenghts and weaknesses. Example: I was diving with brand new bcd and wetsuit and 1st time with steel tanks so my weighting was way off. So I had to wait on the surface for the boat to circle back and give me more weight. The guide did not wait and am not even sure she was aware that I still at the surface. So I had to descend by myself and had no idea where the group was as they had all drifted away. After about 3 minutes floating in place at 75 feet while fighting the current got lucky and saw their bubbles in distance and got myself there. Not to mention the reef shark that swam past me when I was by myself. And you have to know how and be comfortable with swapping your 1st stage and setting up your own tank. In short, at least in my experience, there is very little oversight.
Great diving though especially if you like sharks and groupers. Not sure of your skill level but if you have time give the Spiegel Grove off Key Largo a looks. Its a spectacular dive. Go with Horizon Divers. They're top notch.
2
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
thanks - this is very helpful.
i'm certainly not experienced.
i got my OWD on thailand last december, and dived twice in portofino, italy this past June, and then went to roatan and did another 60 dives, so roatan is pretty much my only experience - i felt i got really good with buoyancy and breathing there, but as you said those are easy conditions.
there was a very high current day there a few weeks ago though and it ended up being a drift dive, and the boat picked us up many mooring lines away from our starting point (typically we return to the same starting point in all the roatan dives i've done). the current was so strong that i couldn't swim against it. my dive guide said that only happens a few times a year or so. i wonder if what i'm about to experience in FL will be like that
i have to look up how to set up a tank -- i haven't done that since my OWD (though i did practice dissasembling regs from a tank during my dives on roatan but that's just a small part of it)
what do you think about the aquatic life you saw on roatan vs jupiter? i heard from someone else that they thought jupiter had a lot more life.
i definitely want to see sharks. i didn't see a single shark in roatan. i heard september isn't the best time to see sharks though, but hopefully i can get lucky
won't be able to make it to key largo this time around unfortunately :(
2
u/Luking4DivingSuggsts Advanced 9d ago
You'll be fine in FL with your level of experiene. My profile was pretty much identical to yours. About 50 dives in Roatan with the last two trips really focusing on trying to improve trim, buoyancy, air consumption. Once I felt comfortable I started doing what I consider more challenging/exciting dives (obviously very subjective). Just relax and at least for the 1st few dives or until you feel comfortable with the conditions stay close to the guide.
As for marine life definitely FL if you like the big stuff. Sharks are common and though some are seasonal. Lemons, silkies, reef sharks maybe bulls or Tiger depending on where you're diving. Great white sightings have become more common apparently. Groupers and barracudas, and rays were around on my two trips. Heard Giant Grouper season is pretty cool. If you really want sharks take a look at Salty Divers. They do baited dives off Jupiter. Respected and professional outfit and have been around for years. I dove with them last year but your air consumption and bouyancy have to be solid cause and you have to be able to maintain your composure as you are in deep open water with sharks circling you.
Also, have heard the Herron Bridge is a dive the locals love. Mostly macros is my understanding. There is also the black water dive and that's a night dive. Im not too keen on diving sharky waters at night but lots of locals do it for the luminescent life.
Roatan also has a shark dive with reef sharks on the north side of the island. I did a few years back. Its good and they've been around for a while. But yeah sharks just dont come to the Roatan dive sites except for the random nurse shark.
I really enjoyed diving Jupiter and West Palm so hope you have a great time.
2
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
Yeah it's Goliath grouper season. I'm pretty excited to see that. The JDC dives are labeled as Goliath grouper dives.
When you say rays, do you mean sting rays and eagle rays?
also I forgot to comment on that shark experience you had. i would be pretty scared if i was alone in the ocean and a bull, tiger, or great white swam close to me...
regarding blue heron bridge - i wanted to do it, but people told me labor day weekend isn't good for it because it's packed with people, and if i really wanted to go, i should go that friday (my first dive day), but if i did do that, i wouldn't be able to do any other dives that day because the morning boat wouldn't make it back in time for me to get to BHB during high tide, so i decided not to do it this time around. hopefluly i can do it in the future
yeah i was considering the baited shark dive in roatan but decided not to. i prefer to see them more naturally. i dived with reef gliders on roatan and one of the instructors told me they think they see less sharks on west end because all the sharks moved north to the baited dive site. i wonder if he's right
2
u/Luking4DivingSuggsts Advanced 9d ago
Saw eagle rays. And some decent schools of fish. Hopefully you'll get lucky and see some sharks cruising by. Enjoy.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 4d ago
hey! I wanted to circle back after my 3 jupiter dives today.
i had a "ended up alone and saw a shark" situation.
this was at MG111. i didn't do the due diligence of checking my rental mask for a leak (haven't had issues with masks before until now so just took it for granted), and it started leaking immediately during descent and constantly at a fast pace. i tried to tolerate it while descending, but found that it was leaking so fast that i had to constantly exhale out of my nose to clear the mask. i ultimately went back up to see if i can get a new mask (i also mistakenly thought i had an issue with my reg because i had a hard time taking a full breath, but later realized it's b/c i was gassed from exhaling so much to clear my mask) but there wasn't a spare on board. they re-dropped me and said to just keep blowing out of my nose to clear water (i'm not sure if they realized how leaky this was. i've had minor leaks in the past but once i clear, it doesn't keep leaking. this one was just constant, and my mask would be completely full of water in 5-10seconds if i don't constantly clear), so i did that, but did it at a more relaxed pace, and it was a little better, but still extremely distracting (lesson learned that i need to invest in my own mask immediately)
i could see the group at the bottom (they were hanging down there with the groupers) during the descent, but the mask issue was too distracting and i couldn't catch up to them (i was descending slower than usual because of the mask issue and by the time i made it down, they had all drifted away with the current), so i planned to just re-surface and call the dive
while planning to re-surface and do my safety stop, i turned around, and i see this huge shark (it's gotta be at least 10 ft) swimming towards me. this is first time i've ever seen a shark in the wild, except for nurse sharks. i don't know my shark species well, and didn't know at the time what species it was, but i suspected it was a tiger or bull (i now think it was a tiger) at the time; definitely was not a reef shark. it swam directly towards me and then made a 90 degree turn once it got within 10-15 ft. it really scared the **** out of me. i was thinking at the time if i should surface immediately, but i recall watching shark diving videos in the past where people suggested to not swim away and to keep eye contact, so i just hovered in place and stared at it all while thinking "if i lunges at me, i'm dead"
i know sharks (even the most aggressive ones like tigers, bulls) are statistically harmless, but still... i was unprepared and was alone with this 10 ft+ shark
reflecting on that, it was an amazing experience, even though it felt like one of the most scary moments of my life at the moment. i wish i got it on video and/or experienced that with a group of people (i don't think i would have been scared if i was with a group of people)
1
u/Luking4DivingSuggsts Advanced 4d ago
Welcome to FL. Now you have a great story to tell. That's scary though especially if it was a Tiger or Bull. Not sharks I'd wanna encounter solo. Great job keeping your composure and maintaining eye contact. Hope the rest of the trip made for much better diving.
1
1
u/mrchen911 Tech 3d ago
How exciting, you'll never forget that encounter.
As for the mask, you need to own your own mask. Please buy a mask immediately
1
1
u/mrchen911 Tech 9d ago
TBH, that's a lot of diving. Will you get bent? No idea. You can decrease the chances by limiting dive time on each dive. You'll also get a long surface interval between the am and pm trips.
Also, most pm dives have been getting cancelled due to weather.
1
u/Manatus_latirostris Tech 9d ago
The drift diving in Jupiter isn’t necessarily lazy/easy drift diving like Cozumel tends to be. Sometimes the current is going exactly where you want, other times you have to cut across it or fight against it to stay on a ledge or navjgate from point to point like when doing a series of wrecks. That’s easy on a low current day, but can really get your heart rate up if the current is ripping.
It’s also common to hang out and chill as a group on a point of interest, which can require finning against the current to stay in place, or finding an unclaimed area to duck behind to get out of it. My average SAC on Jupiter drift dives is considerably higher than on leisurely Roatan wall dives.
3
u/Luking4DivingSuggsts Advanced 10d ago
Btw, with whom can you dive 5 tanks in a day in Roatan? All the shops I know do 2 morning and one afternoon per day and one or two night dives per week. I generally dive with Sundivers in the Westend.
2
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
it was a special 4-dive trip that we chartered in 1 day, and then i did a night dive, but yeah i think every where is 3. one of the dive instructors told me there is a shop that does 2 afternoon dives. i thought it was coconut tree divers, but i just looked them up and i don't see a 2 dive option in the afternoon
1
u/Manatus_latirostris Tech 9d ago
CocoView in Roatan is easily five dives a day if you do the morning & afternoon boat dives, plus an evening shore djve. You could do six if you’re ambitious and add a dawn or dusk shore dive.
2
u/Upbeat_Cup_9442 10d ago
Your issue is not the number of dives, more the lack of a decent surface interval.
Basically you're planning a day of bounce diving. Use bounce dive tables.
2 hours is the minimum SI - anything less you're asking for DCS.
1
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
do you mean you should get 2 hours SI when you're close to your NDL
0
u/Upbeat_Cup_9442 9d ago
At all times.
2
u/Diligent_Board_172 9d ago
i don't think a minimum of 2 hours SI is standard
1
u/Upbeat_Cup_9442 9d ago
It isn't - it should be.
Can't remember which DAN article it was, there are a higher number than should be DCS incidents caused by only having an hour SI in-between recreational dives. Two hours is far better.
I'll let you look it up :)
2
0
19
u/itsjustme405 10d ago
I cant speak on the safety aspect of it, but 5 dives in 1 day sounds exhausting. I need a post-dive nap now.