This video is of a fabulous dive I did at Stetson Bank, a small rocky outcrop that is in 50+ feet of water, 80 miles off the coast of Texas in the Gulf of Mexico.
I spent the 2023 Labor Day weekend aboard the MV Fling, sailing from Freeport, Texas at 9pm on Friday and returning around 6pm on Monday. I did 10 dives in those three days!
This trip was organized by the Central Houston Underwater Mariners (CHUM) Scuba Club and there were 13 of us on the boat!
We visited four different locations over three days on this trip: West Flower Garden Bank, an active Oil Rig H.I. 379B, another reef East Flower Garden Bank and finally a third reef - Stetson.
This dive is the eighth dive of the trip, towards the end of the second day, and the third of four dives on this day. The first two dives were on East Flower Garden Banks, then during lunch we travelled the 50 miles or so to this area, getting in the water just after 5pm.
Dive time was 36 minutes to a maximum depth of 90ft. There was a strong current at the surface, so it was hard work getting to the bottom. The water temperature at the surface was 79 °F, and at the bottom was 76 °F so I was wearing a trilaminate dry suit by Waterproof, under which I wore Waterproof's thin "Body X" undergarments, and I was very comfortable.
Recorded using both a GoPro 11 and then a GoPro 10 camera.
00:00 Introduction 00:58 Jumping In 01:22 Descending in the Current 02:17 Queen Angelfish 03:20 Spotfin Butterflyfish 04:06 Greater Amberjack 04:39 Grey Snapper 05:01 Rock Hind 05:21 Rock Hind 05:36 Grey Snapper 05:45 Rock Hind 06:54 French Angelfish 07:26 Spotted Moray 08:27 Creolefish 08:41 Squirrelfish 09:38 Queen Angelfish 09:49 Creolefish 10:05 Spotted Moray 12:11 Long-Spined Squirrelfish 14:38 Spotted Moray 15:58 Bermuda Chub 16:14 Creolefish 18:05 Blue Tang 18:26 Heading Back Up 18:35 CHUM Members photo
