Dive Review of Jupiter Dive Center and Starfish Scuba/Private home in
The Continental USA/SE Florida

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Jupiter Dive Center and Starfish Scuba/Private home: "Nice to be back in SE Florida", Jun, 2023, by Craig A Wood, PA, US ( Top Contributor 59 reports with 52 Helpful votes). Report 12453.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations	N/A	Food	N/A
Service and Attitude	N/A	Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Flew down to PBI on 6/21, plane was completely full. Took off 2 hours late due to thunderstorm in FL and ground delay. Car pick up at National was effortless. These are my first dives since breaking my left femur in October 2022. A long story and a difficult recovery.' Day 1 diving, Thursday June 22 I went out with Jupiter Dive Center, Republic IV with Capt. Brad, guide Steve, and mate Blaine. I was a bit nervous but turned out much better than expected. No problems on the boat or underwater. The first dive was at Loggerhead. What did we see, well, many, many Loggerheads, at least a dozen or more. We also saw a few Reef Sharks and large Green Morays, 2 Goliath Grouper, and a solo Hawksbill. The treat was a nice Lemon Shark that joined us at the safety stop for a minute or so. Water temp was 80, visibility 40-50 ft. The second dive was at the wreck of the Gulfland/Norman Wreck. A mediocre site I had not been to before with a really beat up wreck Water temp 84, visibility 10-15 feet, less when the OW class kicked it up. Only a few Snook, a lot of bait, and some hunting Jacks. I would not go back to this site. Day 2 diving, Friday June 23 Two nice dives out of Boynton Beach today with Starfish, Capt. Chris, mates Mati and Katie. Started off sunny and very warm, raining moderately when I surfaced from the 2nd dive and continued through return. Visibility was 40-50 feet, water temperature 81-83, mild north current. First dive was on the outside of Clubhouse. A couple of Nurse Sharks, all the usual reef fish. I dived with my friend Maureen, who hunted while I had the flag, very relaxing dive. Second dive was on the inside at Briny Breezes. I saw one of the more interesting things I've seen. I spotted a large Green Moray and went to investigate. Once there, I noticed that 2 Black Brotulas had a special symbiotic relationship with the eel and were cleaning it. They took turns signaling the eel and it would open its mouth maximally wide. They would then swim into its mouth and disappeared down its throat. About 15-20 seconds later, it would swim back out and the eel would close its mouth. I must have watched this show for 7 or 8 minutes, absolutely fascinating. They are quite unique, a single continuous dorsal and anal fin. They shimmy to swim. They bear their young alive rather than laying eggs. Their behavior as cleaners is well known. I have only seen 2 single Black Brotulas in Boynton Beach, deep in recesses, in 13 years of diving here. I also saw a good size Goliath Grouper on the reef, almost forgot to mention it. Day 3 diving, Saturday June 24 2 tanks with Starfish out of Boynton Beach, Capt. Chris, Mati, and Ren. Day was sunny and warm, seas 1-2 feet, water temp 82, Screaming north current on the first dive and half of the second before it slacked off a bit. Covered a lot of ground. First dive started outside of Clubhouse, ended inside at Briny Breezes. Was moving too fast most of the time to see much but caught a glimpse of a Great Hammerhead at mid-reef during the crossover. The dorsal fin got my attention and then I saw its head. It was traveling in the opposite direction. The second dive was on the inside reef, starting at Clubhouse and ending just north of Black Condo. The current decreased noticeably on the second half of the dive. Couple of Loggerhead turtles, nurse shark, all the usual reef fish. A nice vigorous day of diving. Day 4 diving, Sunday June 25 Two dives with Jupiter Dive Center on the Republic IV, Capt. Ryan, guide Steve. It was a very sunny, hot day. Seas 1 foot. Trickle of north current. Water temperature was wild. On Deep Ledge it was 78 below 100 feet and in the 80s above that. At Scarface/Capt. Kirle's it was a cold 75-76 degrees. This was not a great day of diving in Jupiter. The first dive at Deep Ledge had only 5 solo Bull Sharks make very brief appearances. There was one nice large school of Jacks. Visibility was 30-40 feet. Besides being cold, the second dive had poor visibility, mostly around 20 feet. Nothing remarkable, I stayed relatively shallow in an attempt to stay warm in my 3 mm full suit. Not every day of diving can be great. Day 5 diving, Monday June 26, last day Two dives out of Boynton with Starfish, Capt. Chris, mates Katie and Mati. Very hot sunny day, seas around 1 foot, visibility about 30+ feet. First dive on the Castor. The current was ripping. You can tell when the ball drops below the surface and the line is tight and vibrating. Fortunately, the current on the wreck was a little less than the surface and midwater. Only 4-5 Goliath Grouper, all on the stern. A couple large schools of Horse-Eye Jacks and a school of Barracuda on the bow. Water temperature on the Castor was 81. Second dive started on Clubhouse and went through Black Condo in strong current. It was tough with the flag as the current tried to pull off west for much of the dive. Nothing special, all of the usual reef fish. Water temperature was quite warm, 83-84, I got warm fighting the flag. I'm very grateful for the 5 days of diving, I'm quite sure I will do well in Malpelo in 3 weeks. I'll be back for some GG aggregation in September. Good diving to everyone.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	Over 1000 dives
Where else diving	Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, Cayman Brac, Bonaire, Curacao, Turks & Caicos, Bahamas, Roatan, Belize, Cozumel, Key Largo, SE Florida (Boynton Beach, Jupiter, West Palm...), Maui, Oahu, Cape Ann, San Diego, Costa Rica, Panama, Cocos Island, Red Sea, Galapagos, Revillagigedos, Malpelo
Closest Airport	Palm Beach International	Getting There	Direct flight on AA from Philadelphia
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, rainy, cloudy, dry	Seas	calm, currents
Water Temp	75-83°F / 24-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	10-50 Ft/ 3-15 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	45 min bottom time JDC, 60 min run time Starfish
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	I did not take my camera this trip

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Dive Review of Jupiter Dive Center and Starfish Scuba/Private home in The Continental USA/SE Florida

Jupiter Dive Center and Starfish Scuba/Private home: "Nice to be back in SE Florida", Jun, 2023,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Jupiter Dive Center and Starfish Scuba/Private home in
The Continental USA/SE Florida