Diving with the Starfish Enterprise Charter Boat in Lantana Beach, Florida

Captain Craigs boat runs his boat, the Starfish, out of the inlet on Casa Loma Blvd.



Address:
Casa Loma Blvd, Slip # 11
Boynton Beach, FL 33435

Phone Number:
561-212-2954

Driving directions from Dayo Scuba Training Center:

* Leave Dayo Scuba Dive Center, turn north (left) on Executive Drive toward Lee Road.
* Turn right onto LEE RD/FL-423 N, and make an immediate U turn to head south on Lee Rd.
* Merge onto I-4 W via the ramp on the left.
* Merge onto Floridas Turnpike Southbound via Exit 77 toward Miami. Take this road for 144.2 miles
* Take Exit 116, SR-706 towards Jupiter.
* Turn left onto W Indiantown Road/FL-706 E.
* Merge onto I-95 Southbound toward West Palm Beach, travel for 29.4 miles
* Take Exit 57 for FL 804 E
* Turn left onto Boynton Beach Blvd.
* Turn left at NE 5th St
* Turn right at E Boynton Beach Blvd/E Marina Way
* Continue to follow E Marina Way for 0.2 miles

Estimated drive time:
About 3 hours 11 minutes (188 miles). We usually stop on the way down at the Big Canoe service plaza which has the necessary prerequisites of coffee and food.

Reservations:
Captain Craig can be reached at 561-212-2954 to reserve your spot(s). Reservations are essential!

Dive Fees:
* The cost for a two tank dive charter is $60 per person

* Air tanks are available for hire at a cost of $7/tank

* Nitrox tanks are available for hire at a cost of $14/tank

* Bubble watchers are welcome! $30 per bubble watcher

Full gear hire is also available, but must be arranged beforehand!

Single tank, three tank, and full boat charters are also available.

Call Captain Craig on 561-212-2954 for prices and availability


Vessel Particulars:
* The Starfish is a Coastguard certified, 34 foot Crusader decked out for scuba divers comfort. She has a wide beam, large dive platform, and a center rail to stabilize all divers movements.

* The Starfish Enterprise is licensed to carry 22 divers, but they usually only carry 14 (No cattle-boats here!).

* Emergency equipment on board: PFD’s/EPIRB/Auto deploy life raft/O2/fire extinguishers and engine room drench.

* Onboard facilities: Fresh water hose, a head and complimentary snacks.


Typical Trip Schedule:
Monday-Friday the Starfish departs at 9:00 am for a two tank trip.

Saturday & Sunday & Holidays the Starfish departs at 8:00 am & 1:30 pm for a two tank trip.

Divers should bring any scuba gear that they have (and back ups/ spare items as necessary!), a c-card (essential if you are not training with an instructor), any sea sickness medications that could be necessary, a towel, and a jacket, if the conditions require. Ensure your cylinders are filled with the appropriate gas mix, and analyzed by the user.



Expected water temperatures and condition:
Water temperature ranges from low to mid eighties in the summer months to the low seventies in the winter.

Sea state varies from flat calm to several feet....up to date sea states can be found online or by calling Captain Craig.

Typical Sea Life and Dive Profiles:
The reefs that the Starfish visits are typical Caribbean coral reefs, with anything from moray eels, grunts, angelfish to turtles and sharks. Depths run from 45'- 65' on the west side of the reef, to 50'-80' on the east side of the reef. Captain Craig regularly visits the multitude of wrecks nearby, these sit in anything from 80' - 110'.



Typical Dive Routine:
Upon arrival, all divers must sign in with Captain Craig, sign the liability forms, and pay the appropriate fees. The number of dives, types of dives, and dive sites and usually roughly agreed on with the captain before hand.

Crew:
* The owner and operator Captain Craig Smart has more than 25 years of diving experience in these local waters and holds numerous diving and diving related certifications.
* Each of the crew divemasters are also local divers, and trained in CPR/First-aid and certified as an oxygen provider.
* Excellent service is always given from Captain Craig and his crew, who are exceptionally helpful and knowledgeable.

Pre Dive Routine:
Captain Craig or Linda the Divemaster give an extremely thorough vessel brief to all the divers. Full details of the boat layout, safety features, local medical support/procedures, amenities and weather report/expected conditions are given.

A comprehensive dive briefing on the dive sites to be visited on that trip is also given.

Entry and Exit:
All scuba divers gear up, and with ALL their gear on shuffle to the back of the boat. Entry into the water is via giant stride.



Entry back onto the boat is at the rear via the ladders. The crew will help haul the divers and gear back onto the boat.


Dive Dive Dive!
There are many dive sites available off the Starfish Charter boat. The particular dive sites chosen will depend on divers qualifications, experience and choice; and sometimes weather conditions.

On the reef dives, divers drift dive in small groups/buddy pairs, with each group carrying it's own flag and float. Captain Craig and the Starfish crew are waiting for you when you surface.

Wreck dives are completed up and down a line.

Enjoy your dive, be safe and have fun!

Environmental Interaction Suggestions:
Please keep your buoyancy and trim in check at all times. You make the dive site less enjoyable for yourself, your buddies and future divers if you damage the environment. Keep all dangles stowed, and DO NOT touch the reef for any reason. Coral reefs are EXTREMELY fragile, and a damaged reef will also harm or even kill the sea creatures that use it for their home. Graffiti and vandalism will NOT be tolerated. Please don’t touch any sea life. Respect the wildlife and understand that you are a visitor in their environment.




Emergency Procedures:
In case of buddy separation, follow standard procedures. Look for your buddy for one minute. If both of you are using lights (night diving), shield your light to attempt to locate your buddy. If you cannot find your buddy ascend slowly, exhale and do a three minute safety stop at 15 feet. Your buddy should also be following these procedures and will meet you at the surface. Stay with/close to your dive flag. If you have surfaced and are not near/with your dive flag, immediately deploy an SMB to signal the boat.

If anyone is low on air during a dive, signal your buddy with the appropriate hand signal and begin your ascent. In the rare and unusual case of an out of air situation, signal your buddy and commence sharing air. Maintain buoyancy and ascend slowly, remembering to breathe continuously.

Emergency Contact Information:
The captain and crew are all trained in first aid and managing dive emergencies, they will control any emergency situation. A radio is used to contact the EMS in the area by calling 911.

DAN number is 1-919-684-4326
Always call DAN after 911 in the case of a dive emergency.

In case of a Diving emergency in the area the closest Hyperbaric Chamber is:
Hyperbaric Services of the Palm Beaches Llc,
5130 Linton Blvd, Delray Beach, FL 33484

DAN should be called in the case of any diving medical emergency. They will refer you to the correct chamber, if necessary.

Emergency oxygen is available on the Starfish Enterprise, all of the crew are trained in providing oxygen.

Here are a few of the favorite dives made by the Starfish:

* Gulfstream Reef

This reef features alternating 2 to 3 foot high ledges that occasionally jut up to 10 feet high. Another distinguishing feature is the soft sand that bounds the reef to the west. The soft sand is a favorite resting place for southern stingrays.

* Delray Ledges

The Delray Ledges are located south of the Boynton Reef system off the coast from the city of Delray Beach. The reef structure is spectacular! There are long stretches of 15-20 foot high ledges with room-size chunks of broken reef in the sand. There are also several vertical cracks and tunnels in the reef that provide a great background for photo ops. Diving this reef is easy. Just follow the ledge along the top edge or explore the broken reef area just West of the reef.

Lobstering is common off the Starfish boat!

Here are the Lobster Rules:

* Bag Limit: 6 per licensed harvester per day.

* Each harvester must possess a Florida Saltwater Fishing license and a current crawfish (lobster) endorsement (stamp).

Licenses are available at most fish & tackle, Wal-Mart, K-mart or call 1-888-FISH-FLORIDA to receive your license number over the phone. The hardcopy license will be mailed to you. Alternatively you can purchase online.

Measuring Lobster:

* Lobster carapace must be greater than 3 inches long.
* The tail must be longer than 5 ˝ inches.
* All lobster must be measured in water and released unharmed if undersized.
* Each harvester must possess a gauge while in water.

Lobster season opens on August 6 and continues through March 31.


Post Dives:
All dive equipment is removed from the dive boat by the scuba divers and crew. Cars can be driven right up to the berth to facilitate reloading. It is customary to tip the divemasters, most of them work for tips; 10-20% is acceptable depending on service.




Journey home:
Gas is available 5 minutes from the vessel berth. Divers from Orlando normally stop at the service plaza at Port Lucie (about 20 minutes drive back North).
Welcoming pizza, coffee and other refreshments sustain the journey back home.

More info can be found here:

Diving on Captain Craigs Starfish