Diving the Keys - need advice please!

[Bubblemaker7]

Looking for advice on best spots to dive in the keys. I'll be down there the middle of July. I'm lucky enough to dive the best spots in Hawaii on a regular basis, so I'm kinda spoiled & looking for a great experience :shark:

I'm looking for:
- a company that will: (1.) let me dive my own profile- not make me surface when the first few people are out of air (2.) knows their stuff
- healthy, colorful reef
- wreck dives
- big stuff
- unusual stuff
- out of the way locations- not the usual cattle rides to the same worn out reefs

Aloha!

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

It's been a few years since I've been so I will offer generalities. If you want more control over your dives go with a smaller boat. There seem to be boats that will take 20-30 divers and boats that will take 6. On a big boat you will not have much control over where you go or how long you stay. On the other hand the bigger boats may be more comfortable in rough seas which are usually in the afternoon. The popular wreck dives will be crowded anyway.

 

[Chugwhump]

Looking for advice on best spots to dive in the keys. I'll be down there the middle of July. I'm lucky enough to dive the best spots in Hawaii on a regular basis, so I'm kinda spoiled & looking for a great experience :shark:
I'm looking for:
- a company that will: (1.) let me dive my own profile- not make me surface when the first few people are out of air (2.) knows their stuff
- healthy, colorful reef
- wreck dives
- big stuff
- unusual stuff
- out of the way locations- not the usual cattle rides to the same worn out reefs

Aloha!

Iif you are not with a traveling group, and do not charter a six pack or something similar,
you will be mostly disappointed in "The Keys".

Here is why.

The Florida Keys business model is to suck money out of people from Ohio who dive very little.
The Keys are stuffed with overly controlling large cattle boats.
The reason for this is easily understood.
When you take 40 people out t a time, who have never dived/doved together,
it is very easy to just tie up to a ball or even drop an anchor in the sand and just tell them to swim in a circle for 45 minutes.
The only operators that I know of in The Keys that are going to give you what you are looking for will be the small six packs.
You can also look into Captain's Corner down in Key West.
They are my favorite Key West operator.
Because they do not nanny you to death, IF, you know what you are doing.
But please keep in mind, most Keys operators go to the same old places all of the time, unless you charter the entire boat.

Up here where I live in Broward County, next to Palm Beach County, you will find it far easier to go out on boats that will let you do what you want to do.

The Keys business model of dive shops is not at all supportive of what you are describing.

There are very, very few operators you describe down there.

But the fish, the out of the way places, the reefs, and just about everything else you are looking for is.

This will take some work on your part.

Chug
Has as a VERY low opinion of most Keys Dive Operators.
High personnel turnover.
High cost, little return.
Low experience.
High ignorance.

 

[sportxlh]

The Keys are a lot of fun, but as Chug points out, attract a lot of inexperienced divers. With that said, there are a lot of pretty good dive shops and divers in the Keys: heck, the owner of SB is a Keys resident and I've seen him dive (he's a pretty good diver!!!) A few of the reefs, such as the one around the Christ of the Abyss statue are really really beat up. But there are some pristine reefs as well. Two sites that I am particularly fond of that don't get a ton of dive boats include Conch Wall: its one of the deep reefs (100 feet to the sand) so doesn't attract the inexperienced divers. That particular reef is in fantastic condition and reminds be of some of the reefs I've seen in the Bahamas. It's not a true 'wall' but a steep ledge/incline that drops from 45 feet to 100 at about a 50-60 degree angle. I also like Hens and Chickens which is a shallow reef, but out of the way of many of the dive boats since it is at the very end of Key Largo, near Tavernier: its an unusual reef structure and quite beautiful if the vis is decent. You also can't go wrong with the wrecks of the Spiegel Grove, Eagle and the Duane. There can be several boats tied off the the various mooring balls, but you seldom interact with other divers. In my experience, the Eagle seems to get less dive boat traffic that the S. Grove. The Duane also gets a bit less dive boat traffic than the S. Grove since the Duane's deck is deeper and it also has fewer mooring balls.

Most dive shops publish their dive plans on their websites and have description of the reefs. I happen to like Conch Republic, but like a lot of dive shops, does limit shallow dives to 60 minutes on shallow reefs and limits deeper dives to your computer, which is generally going to be about 45 minutes. Like all dive shops, they have a schedule to keep and run morning and afternoon trips. I do think six packs can be more flexible if you charter all six spots or happen to meet up with other divers that have the same goal as you. The only six pack I've used is Quiescence, a very good shop. Not many shops allow deco diving on a regular basis, but I've been out with Silent World and Capt's Corner in KW and both have allowed one long deco dive when the rec divers were doing a double dip. The deco divers had to make arrangements prior to the trip to get approval to do this. I think Horizon Divers is pretty flexible too: they've let me solo the deep wrecks (am certified and had redundant gear)

One shop is particularly popular on SB but you should probably avoid. That's Rainbow Reef: they provide guides and while I've had very good experience with them, it sounds like that is not the type of diving you're looking for.

The Keys are fun to visit under any circumstances. I have world class drift diving 10 minutes from my neighborhood in Jupiter and West Palm Beach, but still enjoy making a couple trips to the Keys each year for diving and other diversions. It's such a laid back atmosphere and most of the dive shops I've used have really good staff members. A friend of mine always says that 'we've just entered another country' when we pass over the final bridge to Key Largo.... and it sort of feels that way.

By the way SB member Reefman posts some pretty neat dive reports on a regular basis. If you look at a few of his posts, you'll get a feel for some of the diving. Here' s a recent post: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/fl...s-reef-key-largo-saturday-6-20-15-photos.html

If you really want to see big stuff, take a side trip to Jupiter. 10 days ago, I did a night dive and we saw 24 turtles: green, loggerhead and hawksbill. A couple of weeks ago, we saw 15 or so goliath grouper along one reef line. Sharks are common (my dive buddy saw a tiger this weekend, but I missed it). I like Jupiter Dive Center and do about 50 dives with the shop each year, but there's also Captain Sl8r who I understand runs a nice operation: another operator runs shark feeding dives (see Sharks of Palm Beach thread for info)

 

[Trigger-F]

I had good luck with Abyss Dive center in Marathon for years but the previous owner recently sold the dive shop(their boat was a six pack). Also dove with 'A Deep Blue Dive' couple times, they have or used to have a six pack/small boat too. Marathon reefs are quite colorful, but like Chug pointed out, you can dive Pompano/LBS-South FL and have pretty much the same experience, probably for less $ due to the proximity of the reefs to the beach. Also, you can shore dive and follow your own profile(reefs are very rewarding and in overall good shape). Some pretty good wrecks off Lauderdale too.

 

[CajunDiva]

I think you will find PLENTY of diving inspiration in Key Largo. We have made it our dive "home" in the USA for the past 15 years. I don't share the opinion of the business model put forth in the previous post, based on a long term relationship with several of the dive operators in the area. There is a great deal of competition in Key Largo, so in order to survive, a dive operation must be very good...and consistent.

I see you are a very experienced diver, and I'm happy you get to regularly experience some great dives in Hawaii. If you are making a special trip to the keys to look for something better than you experience in Hawaii, then I would say that's probably not the best goal. If, however, you are "going to be down there" anyway, I would suggest that you definitely get out there and check it out. That's the best thing about dive travel - you get to dive different areas of the world and see the ever changing beauty of our oceans.

Some of the best wrecks are right there in Key Largo. They regularly dive the USS Duane, USS Bibb, and the USS Spiegel Grove - three really special wrecks. I am not even a big fan of wreck diving, but these never fail to inspire me. My favorites are the shallow reef dives. I love to explore and look for the tiny critters that are always in attendance, especially the ones who hide in the corkscrew anemones like Pederson Cleaning Shrimp, Banded Coral Shrimp and even the Pistol Shrimp that will give you a big WHACK if you get too close :shocked2:

We have been diving with Rainbow Reef Dive Center for the past 15 years. They put guides in the water with you at no additional cost. While you are an experienced diver and don't NEED the assistance, it's always great to have these guys around, because they know where all the cool things live and it saves you the time of trying to find things. If, however, you prefer to be on your own and do your own thing, you can simply let them know and they will let you dive your own plan without trying to keep track of you. They just ask that you return to the boat in an hour with a minimum tank pressure. I think that is pretty much the standard in the Key Largo area in order to keep a schedule which allows others waiting for the next trip out to enjoy their dives also.

Of course, there are always beginning divers who want to experience the reefs for the first time. But there are also PLENTY of advanced divers who realize that Key Largo is one of the best options available to us in the United States for some quality diving. There are plenty of opportunities for tech divers and even rebreather support. Rainbow Reef is the #1 PADI IDC in the United States, and they offer plenty of support for any of the above. I am perfectly happy with my single tank and nitrox. Just let me explore and take pictures and videos...I'll be content But if you have a different perspective and are looking for more, that option is available to you as well. I have never felt any pressure to spend more, do more, learn more...we've just always had great, safe, rewarding experiences with them.

Key Largo is a great diving community. The town is filled with some of the most qualified scuba professionals in the world...dive operations, photographers, scuba equipment retailers...heck, it's even home to SCUBABOARD! You couldn't be among better company - seriously. I would recommend that while you are there, you make the most of every opportunity and get out there and enjoy what is available to you

 

[Chugwhump]

So um....
Can anyone tell me of an operator in "The Keys" that routinely does drift dives?

Chug
Saw Jesus in 1972 for the first time.

 

[CajunDiva]

I think if you're specifically looking for drift dives, the East coast of Florida would be the "go to" spot. Wrecks? Maybe, maybe not. We've enjoyed some really fun drift dives in Key Largo too.

 

[Chugwhump]

Please name the operator Diva that took you on a drift dive in Key Largo.

There are precious few.

I know of several that will do drift dives, but they are small, as in six packs.

This being said, I did a very pair of drift dives on a Friday afternoon with Conch Republic Divers in Tevernier on a Friday afternoon about 2 months ago.
I was accompanied by 4 other of my usual dive pals from up here in Broward.
It required advance notice, and there were only 8 divers including me, on their big boat.
They were VERY accommodating.
And we were limited to an hour of bottom time.

Chug
Sometimes drifts away in Margaritaville.
Almost always drifts away in a breakaway county from Dade.

 

[CajunDiva]

Per my recent trip report:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/fl...ual-cajun-invasion-key-largo-trip-report.html

we did back-to-back drift dives with Rainbow Reef. First dive on Conch Wall and Second on Molasses Reef, covering about three dive sites.

It was my dive group and we had our own boat, so really didn't have the normal charter schedule to deal with. We dove as a group, and our dive times were dictated by the air consumption of our group. We have done numerous drift dives with Rainbow Reef on previous trips, on the regular charter boat. But they were not pre-planned - they were conducted as a result of the existing current or because someone was doing a drift diving specialty course.

---------- Post added June 23rd, 2015 at 09:11 PM ----------

Chug - an important point is that with Rainbow Reef, they have guides in the water. They know the sites very well. On the reefs in Key Largo, the mooring balls are plentiful. So they might drop the divers at Point A and the guides will take you on a drift dive to Point B (which is pre-determined by the captain and the guides) where the boat will then be waiting and watching. Not the traditional drift dive you are talking about, but the divers still get to cover more territory, and the guides will make sure they all get to the right place after a leisurely drift. Again, these are not planned in advance. I'm sure it would all depend on the divers and whether all were diving with a guide and all were agreeable to a drift dive.