Idiot's Delight
Dive site · United States
Open Water divers and up
Scored for Advanced divers
Fresh water: lake, river or quarry
Is it worth the trip?
64Good out of 100 for your dates
2 days tie for best
Mon 2 · 62 out of 100
- Wind
- 10 kn
- Gusts
- 24kn
- Rain
- 31.3 mm
- Air
- 26°C
Tue 3 · 63 out of 100
- Wind
- 8 kn
- Gusts
- 15kn
- Rain
- 1.1 mm
- Air
- 28°C
Wed 4 · 64 out of 100
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Rain
- 1.9 mm
- Air
- 29°C
Thu 5 · 65 out of 100
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 4kn
- Rain
- 0 mm
- Air
- 26°C
Fri 6 · 64 out of 100
- Wind
- 1 kn
- Gusts
- 2kn
- Rain
- 0.3 mm
- Air
- 26°C
Sat 7 · 65 out of 100
- Wind
- 2 kn
- Gusts
- 10kn
- Rain
- 0 mm
- Air
- 26°C
Sun 8 · 64 out of 100
- Wind
- 0 kn
- Gusts
- 3kn
- Rain
- 0 mm
- Air
- 25°C
Tap a day for wind, gusts and rain. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 261, good
- Tue 363, good
- Wed 464, good
- Thu 564, good
- Fri 664, good
- Sat 764, good
- Sun 865, good
- Mon 964, good
- Tue 1064, good
- Wed 1164, good
The site in four facts
- Down to 6 mits deepest
- From a boathow you get in
- Open Waterand up
- Fresh watera lake, quarry or spring
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know currents, the visibility on the day or your certification.
Fresh water: lake, river or quarry: scored by other rules.
Fresh water has no waves to forecast, so the 39 points out of 100 that a sea site gets for a calm sea are given in full. The day turns on the wind (20 points) and the rain (6); gusts of 30 kn or more still score it nothing.
No satellite reads a lake's clarity or its water, so its day is its surface alone: 65 of 100, where a sea site also scores up to 20 for how far you see and 10 for warm water (D275).
No sea temperature is read for it: nothing forecasts a lake's water, and it is often much colder at depth than at the top. Ask a dive centre what suit to bring.
Suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it. Scored for Advanced divers.
| Day | Score | Wind | Gusts | Rain | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 61, good | 10 kn | 24kn | 31.3 mm | 26°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 63, good | 8 kn | 15kn | 1.1 mm | 28°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 64, good | 5 kn | 9kn | 1.9 mm | 29°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 64, good | 3 kn | 4kn | 0 mm | 26°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 64, good | 1 kn | 2kn | 0.3 mm | 26°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 64, good | 2 kn | 10kn | 0 mm | 26°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 65, good | 0 kn | 3kn | 0 mm | 25°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 64, good | 6 kn | 15kn | 0 mm | 22°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 64, good | 4 kn | 15kn | 0 mm | 19°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 64, good | 2 kn | 11kn | 0 mm | 21°C |
Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. More
Tide
- Mon 2 NovLow 00:47 −0.0 mHigh 06:44 +0.4 mLow 14:01 −0.4 mHigh 20:53 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 02:21 −0.1 mHigh 08:36 +0.4 mLow 15:13 −0.3 mHigh 21:39 +0.3 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 03:33 −0.3 mHigh 10:03 +0.4 mLow 16:11 −0.3 mHigh 22:16 +0.4 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Slack water, the safest time to dive where there is current, is about half an hour either side of each high and low. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Map
the site and its town
Idiot's Delight on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Idiot's Delight
A cave dive in fresh water: a lake, quarry or spring. It goes down to 6 m. You get in from a boat. It suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it. 2 dive centres or shops within 10 km, the nearest 0.5 km away. The town to stay in is Crystal River.
- Water Fresh water: a lake, river or quarry, not the sea. It is scored on its wind and rain only.
- What it is Cave.
- How deep Down to 6 m.
- Getting in From a boat.
- Who it suits Suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it.
- Dive centres 2 dive centres or shops within 10 km, the nearest 0.5 km away.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$978–US$1,780 each
about US$978–US$1,780 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to TPA, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag | about US$181–US$382 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$154–US$255 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$301–US$502 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$342–US$636 |
| Total | about US$978–US$1,780 |
Guided dives are not priced yet: we have no sourced price, so it is not in it. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Crystal River
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 5 min by car · 14 places to stay
about US$114/nightcountry average
About Crystal River its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$114 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 6h 35m
About 6h 35m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → TPA, direct, then 2h 05m by road
Flights MDW → TPA on your dates · AviasalesAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Dives and courses in Crystal River · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Crystal River · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
American Pro 0.5 kmPADI
The nearest named dive centres and shops within 25 km, in a straight line; training agencies where the map states them. Listings, not a recommendation. Dive centres: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits
What is under the water (visibility, current, life) no free forecast gives. Ask a dive centre before you book.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.