#3326
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Christopher -
In the immediate vicinity of Jax itself, you’re limited to offshore only. The river is not suitable and the natural non-beach shoreline is primarily a coastal marsh ecosystem. (Similar to Savannah) There are only 2 charter boats that regularly run trips out of Mayport, as well as one up in St. Mary’s GA (about 40min north) and I’ve included links to the 3 of them below:
offshoredivecharters.com/
divejax.com/
southgeorgiadivecharters.com/
All of their prices are higher than what you see in south Florida but that’s because the offshore dive locations here don’t start until at least 9-10 miles out. Those locations average 65-80’ deep but there are other spots as far as 30 miles out with depths between 100-130’. The deeper areas tend to have excellent spearfishing due to their closer proximity to the Gulf Stream. While there are some natural ledges in the area, most dive spots are artificial reefs of various size/composition. There’s a local group in Jax named TISIRI (tisiri.org/reefs/) that is actively promoting the creation of more artificial reefs and has done some really good work and outreach to the community of late, particularly regarding lionfish eradication. The best time to dive offshore NE Florida is between late April to about the end of October as the water gets much colder and the seas rougher during the other times of the year. If you prefer freshwater dives, the closest places are either to the west of Jax around the Suwannnee River area (Ginnie Springs, Troy Springs, Peacock Springs, etc), southwest of Gainesville (Blue Grotto, Devils Den, Manatee Springs, Rainbow River), south near Ocala/Ocala National Forest (Paradise Springs, Alexander Springs) or west of Daytona Beach (Blue Springs State Park). Most of these sites are within 2-3 hours of Downtown Jax. (a bit less depending on where in town you’re coming from & how fast you drive. :) ) BE ADVISED though, if you’re going to most of these freshwater sites, you need to arrive EARLY (before 9am especially at Blue & Manatee Spgs.) as once the park fills up they close the gates for the day.
Hope this helps you and anyone else out who may be coming to the area.
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