I got certified back when i was 13 years old I love it. It's so peaceful and relaxing. Unfortunately I have not gone in many years I started to have problems being able to clear my ears heck I would probably have to go threw certification again. Anyways anybody ever been to white star or Gilboa? For those of you that have not been or do not know what they are, It's these old gravel pits that they took over just for divers there is so much to see and the water is crystal clear it's a must dive!
I love to dive!!!!
- Thread starter ostromk45
- Start date
scubamattv
Member
Yes, diving is awesome. You wouldn't have to go through the class again, but if its been a while, a refresher course would probably be a good idea. I've never been to Gilboa, but i have a couple friends that dove it and said it was good. I think that like most of the quarries i've been in that it is probably pretty cold... but it is diving, so it is good.
chipmunkofdoom2
Well-Known Member
I took a NAUI class for PE credit at school, and man it was great. I didn't go through with the certification dive because I didn't have the money. Definitely plan on taking the class again.
scubamattv
Member
Diving is why I got into having a salt water tank. I decided that if I couldn't dive in the coral reef all the time, I'd try to bring some of it home. Though my little 20 gallon tank isn't anywhere near large enough for what I love seeing while diving... SHARKS!
johnmaloney
Well-Known Member
if you like sharks it is almost worth taking a trip with the Jupiter Dive Center when the lemon sharks breed. They breed just off the coast of me, it is a sight to see 1000s of the most deadly sharks in the water cruising around all at the same time. From an aerial view they get so thick as to make the water appear black. 
scubamattv
Member
Sounds awesome. I'd gladly jump in the water with the sharks. So far I've only seen a couple white tipped reef sharks and a nurse shark. Whenever i go to north carolina, all the sand tigers hide. Almost 300 dives and only a handful of sharks... maybe I need to stop diving in quarries... or at least dive in the ocean more.
Yeah depending on what time of the year you go but of coarse the deeper you go the colder it is. I cant remember weather it was white star or gilboa you can go inside this structure you enter by going down this spiral star case at the bottom you are at 80ft deep so its a little chilly. Then to exit you have to come up this cement tunnel its kind of neat when you look up and see all your bubbles moving along the ceiling. Then after you are out turn right and go a ways and then bam no warning besides the sign there is a drop off. No one knows how deep it goes there is a rope that you can hang on to if you want to go down cause in just a few feet it turns pitch black. then of coarse I cant forget the school bus. They sell feed and you go down to this school bus and sit on top and hundreds of fish swarm you to get fed its pretty cool.
That is something even as a little kid watching shark week have wanted to do is swim with sharks. Any sharks would be awesome but what I really want is to go down in a cage with huge great whites all around
. Before I was certified to dive my dad and I was in key west Florida. He booked a two day diving charter I could not dive but they said I could snorkel. I thought what the heck what if this is my only chance to swim in the ocean so I went. We went out what seem to be hours and when we finally stopped at the spot it was 60ft deep not clear water and with 3ft waves. Once again the thought that this might be my only chance I jumped in. Oh learned real fast that salt water tastes nasty. The waves where crashing on my head water going down my snorkel it was not fun. I finally calmed down and gained control I put my face down to take a look around and all I can see was this dark outline of something bigger then the boat moving below me. I said the heck with that and got the heck out of the water lol. The next day I told my dad I wanted to stay at the resort because I thought it would just be like the day before. I have regretted that choice every since because that was the day they went to the reefs:smack:
scubamattv
Member
School buses seem to be a staple of quarries... I've been in at least 3 quarries with a school bus, and they are neat to play in. That sounds like a fun quarry to dive in. You can also try bringing hot dogs with you instead of the feed they sell... that'll also make you popular with the fish. One of the lakes I like to dive in is at Mt. Storm, WV. The lake is actually used as a cooling facility by a coal power plant so the water is warm year round. in the summer the water is 80-90 degrees at depth (~100 ft). though when you go that deep in the lake, it is also pitch black. There are tons of catfish in that lake.
scubamattv
Member
I'd love the chance to dive with great whites WITHOUT the cage (and associated chum). A lot of the great white shark attacks are surfers on the surface... so maybe being a wierd looking thing making strange noises (bubbles) down with them would be ok... thats my theory anyway... not sure i'll get a chance to test it.
Yeah most shark attacks happen at the surface. They say because there eye sight is not very well attacks are mainly mistaken idenity from below I guess we look like seals or sea lions. Great whites are ambush predators they strike from below at high speed to daze and confuse then they come back to finish the prey off. So yeah being on the bottom would be a good idea but great whites as all sharks besides hammer heads are attracted to sound and movement. Sharks are very curious creatures and may take a bite just to investigate what that funny looking thing is in the water making bubbles lol.
EmagdniM
Member
haha you can be like the guy that puts sharks to sleep while diving with them. Pretty crazy, but he can get one to rest its nose on him and then flip it over on its back where it "sleeps" until he flips its back. I saw a video on discovery about him a while back...I think it was either Tiger sharks or Great Whites he was working with...right off the coast of Africa somewhere. Pretty ballsy...but awesome.
yeah I have seen that guy it's pretty cool. Actualy they don't really go to sleep it's something with there equal libreum when flip over it temorarly paralyzes them. They can not do it for long though or they will die because sharks always have to be moving in order to breath. When they do sleep only one half of there brain sleeps at a time while the other half keeps them swimming. If I remember right the nurse shark is the only species that can stay still and still be able to breath. Sorry for going on and on but like I said before I have always been facinated with sharks and soak everything up Pertaining to them.
scubamattv
Member
yes sharks are awesome. Its too bad that the average person views all sharks as visous man-eating monsters. probably why millions are killed each year. they are just misunderstood.
On an unrelated note. I'm going through a severe case of scuba-itus (also know as scuba withdrawal). luckily this should be cured (at least temporarily) in ~ a week.
On an unrelated note. I'm going through a severe case of scuba-itus (also know as scuba withdrawal). luckily this should be cured (at least temporarily) in ~ a week.
johnmaloney
Well-Known Member
have fun! i saw a nurse shark just the other day and thought of this thread. there is a cave by me that they all sleep in, the current passes over there gills so they sit on the bottom all day, so while they are still they still have water moving over their gills all the time. Nice sizes too, they are in excess of 7 feet, there is a super male that is easily over 10, the super males are pretty common in the area.
Take that shark dive, they have a video you can youtube, just google "lemon shark dive juno" and you should find it.
Take that shark dive, they have a video you can youtube, just google "lemon shark dive juno" and you should find it.
scubamattv
Member
Here's some pics of the nurse sharks i saw
scubamattv
Member
there's also a Goliath grouper in the last pic.
scubamattv
Member
Here's a couple more pics..
sweet pics looks like you had fun! Yeah I thought that was a grouper in that pic did you know they are related to the freshwater bass? Go on youtube and type in worlds largest bass I am pretty sure thats what it is under. This guy was fishing and caught a Goliath grouper it is bigger then the boat he was in fought it for 4 or 5 hours.
scubamattv
Member
I'd believe it.. the grouper get really big.