Scuba divers of Houston: What’s the nearest place to Houston that you can dive that has the best views and activities?

I'm new to scuba diving and my training dives were at Lake Longhorn in League City, with visibility about 18 inches. Sure, breathing underwater is incredible, but… it would be nice to be able to SEE underwater, too!

Recently I went on my first "real" (non-training) scuba trip. We drove down to Mammoth Lake, near Freeport.

It was great fun, and visibility was a lot better than Lake Longhorn. The underwater objects were fun to explore and we shot some GoPro video… but again, you never could see more than about 8 or 10 feet through the green murkiness.

I know there are places around The Woodlands and Austin, but the reason for my post is to get the input of experienced divers…

Do we really have to go to Florida to experience a lot of clear water and natural beauty? I mean, things like coral, big fish, etc.?