CajunDiva
Contributor
So...this year we are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary. We couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than to return to where it all began - Key Largo. This time we got our own special little apartment. Just the two of us. No entourage. No group. Just us. Think that's how it ended up??? 
Not !!!
It started out that way...really. But we still brought the gumbo. And we kind of lost track of how many great friends we have made in Key Largo in the past 15 years of diving with Rainbow Reef Dive Center. And how much our friends like gumbo. Our special little apartment was still gumbo central, but this time we couldn't entertain masses of friends all at once. So we had to split everyone up and have gumbo on multiple nights to accommodate our dive buddies. What a busy week - we had a blast!
Although the gumbo was plentiful and the times were great, this trip was still about the diving. We discovered Rainbow Reef Dive Center when they first opened their location in Key Largo back in 2004. Since that time we have enjoyed numerous return visits and enjoyed many fun dives. Again, with the exception of one day of nasty weather, our dive trip was flawless. We received an e-mail confirming our reservation with details of where to check in and what time. Upon arrival, we received pleasant greetings from the friendly staff members, got signed in for our 5 days of diving, and off we went.
This week we decided we just wanted to chill and enjoy relaxing shallow dives. Our focus was more on enjoying the staff and having an enjoyable time...and celebrating a bit
This trip we were pleased to dive with the General Manager of Rainbow Reef Dive Center, Billy Wise. He had a group visiting from his old home dive shop in Mississippi. There were plenty of friendly divers to share space with on the Tropical Legend, which was our vessel for the week.
The sites we dove were at Molasses Reef and French Reef. Coral Canyon...Aquarium...Christmas Tree Cave...Hard Bottom Cave...Sand Island...Spanish Anchor...Winch Hole and vicinity. Boat operations were safe, professional and lots of fun. Briefings were thorough and informative. Water temperature was around 86 degrees and our dive times ranged from 52 to 64 minutes. Since we weren't able to visit last year, I hadn't observed the reefs since Irma struck during our last trip down. While some of the sites showed signs of environmental stress, I was encouraged by the new growth I observed at others. Fish life was good! We saw lots of nurse sharks, a spotted eagle ray, plenty of the usual suspects...angels, puffers, grunts, etc. I also had a blast spotting quite a few of my favorites...corkscrew anemones with various small critters living inside.
During the past couple of years, our focus has been on international travel and visiting some of the bucket list places we've always wanted to dive. After our recent travel experiences, I was reminded of the convenience that diving in Key Largo provides. No passports necessary, no language issues, health care readily available where your health insurance actually works, and great diving! No matter how far our travels take us, Key Largo and Rainbow Reef Dive Center will always be considered our dive "home"
Many thanks to all of our local Key Largo dive buddies who made our anniversary week so special. We had a blast sharing gumbo with all of you - which is a sacred Cajun tradition, exploring new places with you and hanging out with you. Can't wait to come home again!
Not !!!It started out that way...really. But we still brought the gumbo. And we kind of lost track of how many great friends we have made in Key Largo in the past 15 years of diving with Rainbow Reef Dive Center. And how much our friends like gumbo. Our special little apartment was still gumbo central, but this time we couldn't entertain masses of friends all at once. So we had to split everyone up and have gumbo on multiple nights to accommodate our dive buddies. What a busy week - we had a blast!
Although the gumbo was plentiful and the times were great, this trip was still about the diving. We discovered Rainbow Reef Dive Center when they first opened their location in Key Largo back in 2004. Since that time we have enjoyed numerous return visits and enjoyed many fun dives. Again, with the exception of one day of nasty weather, our dive trip was flawless. We received an e-mail confirming our reservation with details of where to check in and what time. Upon arrival, we received pleasant greetings from the friendly staff members, got signed in for our 5 days of diving, and off we went.
This week we decided we just wanted to chill and enjoy relaxing shallow dives. Our focus was more on enjoying the staff and having an enjoyable time...and celebrating a bit
This trip we were pleased to dive with the General Manager of Rainbow Reef Dive Center, Billy Wise. He had a group visiting from his old home dive shop in Mississippi. There were plenty of friendly divers to share space with on the Tropical Legend, which was our vessel for the week. The sites we dove were at Molasses Reef and French Reef. Coral Canyon...Aquarium...Christmas Tree Cave...Hard Bottom Cave...Sand Island...Spanish Anchor...Winch Hole and vicinity. Boat operations were safe, professional and lots of fun. Briefings were thorough and informative. Water temperature was around 86 degrees and our dive times ranged from 52 to 64 minutes. Since we weren't able to visit last year, I hadn't observed the reefs since Irma struck during our last trip down. While some of the sites showed signs of environmental stress, I was encouraged by the new growth I observed at others. Fish life was good! We saw lots of nurse sharks, a spotted eagle ray, plenty of the usual suspects...angels, puffers, grunts, etc. I also had a blast spotting quite a few of my favorites...corkscrew anemones with various small critters living inside.
During the past couple of years, our focus has been on international travel and visiting some of the bucket list places we've always wanted to dive. After our recent travel experiences, I was reminded of the convenience that diving in Key Largo provides. No passports necessary, no language issues, health care readily available where your health insurance actually works, and great diving! No matter how far our travels take us, Key Largo and Rainbow Reef Dive Center will always be considered our dive "home"
Many thanks to all of our local Key Largo dive buddies who made our anniversary week so special. We had a blast sharing gumbo with all of you - which is a sacred Cajun tradition
, exploring new places with you and hanging out with you. Can't wait to come home again! 
