Freedive South Florida !
Posted By Paul Kotik on 20 March 2006
When I settled in South Florida 3 years ago, I felt a bit like a pilgrim who'd finally reached Xanadu. Ocean, ocean everywhere. Miami, home to Pipin the godfather of freedivers. Wild dolphins in abundance, surfing the bow wave and frolicking in the great Biscayne Bay. My previous address had been in Haiku, Maui. I think I imagined South Florida would be kind of a Hawaiian megalopolis, and that the aquatic portion of my life would go on more or less unchanged.
Not quite.
South Florida has a great deal to offer as a freediving destination, but I've come to appreciate the importance of tuning one's expectations, and therefore, one's plans and even one's equipage to the region's special challenges and opportunities. Having by now greeted and dived with many dozens of visiting freedivers, I'd like to pass along what I, as a slightly more experienced newcomer, have learned about getting the most out of what can be a fantastic venue.
First, the matter of climate. South Florida is not quite tropical, although for much of the winter it does a pretty good imitation of it. There are, however, cold snaps. Writing this, on February 1, near Fort Lauderdale, I can recall a couple of recent nights when the mercury dipped to around 40 F / 4 C, but today I was toasting in 82 F /28 C sunshine in the afternoon. The Atlantic long the East Coast, from Palm Beach to Miami, has been around 73F / 23 C.
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