Dear Wreck Valley Divers,
My wife (CindyB) and I needed a short vacation to recharge our batteries. One of the easiest ways to do this was a trip to the Florida Keys. Key Largo in particular. If you like wrecks and warm water this is the place.
The major chain motel/hotel rates at this time of year are for deep pockets only. We checked out and finally choose to stay at the Amoray (Amy Slate) dive resort (MM 103). There is a room and a price for any budget. The resort rooms were neat and cleaned daily. All rooms have air conditioning and many with an ocean (gulf) view. Lots of hot water for showers and a gear locker to store your wet/rinsed gear. They have a catamaran that frequents mostly the local reefs.
We basically used the Amoray resort as a place to sleep. We accomplished all our diving with Divers City (MM 90.5). This dive shop is own and operated by a former Pittsburgh diver, Barbara Froelich. For your reference, check out the WEB site:
www.diverscityusa.com
Divers City has everything that an experienced diver would need. Nitrox, fast boat and no crowds (or snorklers). You simply show up and set up your tanks (steel or AL are available) and either Barbara or Kip Hoover (the captain of the dive boat) will lug them and all your dive gear you could possibly bring with you to the boat moored at the rear of her shop. The shop also has excellent gear for rent including doubles and serves up tri-mix for those who present poof of training. Divers City also allows experienced divers to dive your profile. They also allow you to do Jersey style diving by doing repetitive dives on the same or other wrecks (compared to most other shops who dump divers on the shallow reefs for a second dive).
Dive day one took us to the wreck of the Duane. This is an artificial reef wreck of a USA Coast Guard cutter. It is a mature wreck and is one of the best warm water wrecks on the east coast. She lies upright in 120 feet of water about ten miles offshore (a very short ride with Divers City boat cruising at 22 MPH).
Now, for the fun and challenging part. The wreck lies near the Gulf Stream and currents are a fact of life. There was about a two plus knot flow, so Kip had us hot dropped on the mooring buoy. If you missed the line he would eventually pick you up again for a second shot.
We had four divers that day and two of us hit the line. CindyB and I were buddied up with the proverbial third buddy (the other diver was a solo diver with a very large camera. The cameraman and I made it to the line but CindyB and the other diver just missed. They were very lucky in that the viz was excellent and the current was flowing from bow to stern (we were dropped on the bow buoy). They both did a free descent and eventually we all enjoyed the dive of a lifetime.
Our second dive was a drift dive on Crockers Reef. It was not Cozumel but we saw plenty of underwater life including a large southern ray. We were also going to do a Night dive on the Duane but called it because of the current.
The next day of diving took us to the Spiegel Grove. It was Memorial Day and for the first time ever in my experiences, there were several unused mooring lines available. As usual, the current was strong. Kip backed the boat up to the mooring buoy and we entered by grabbing the stern mooring line. This would be a drift dive and Kip would pick us up on the bow!
To make another dive story short, we did two drift dives on the S.G. We were able to see the entire length of the ship twice. The pick up on the bow involved floating free from the mooring buoy and Kip did a rolling recovery very nicely. Needless to say, my confidence diving in harsh currents soared. That night we did a Night dive on the Duane. This is was my second Night dive on this ship and it never fails to excite me. The currents had not changed, but with the experiences gained, this was standard procedures for me and CindyB.
The next dive day was supposed to take us to the Bibb. This is the sister cutter of the Duane and lies on its side in 130 feet of water. Again, the currents were raging and the bow buoy was missing. We could have shot up a lift bag on the bow but, that would violate sound safety procedures. Instead, we did the Duane again. The current was probably a bit faster but the dive went off with everyone making the drop and hitting the line. As usual, Kip did a rolling pick up off the bow buoy. Our second was a deep (80 to 90 foot) drift dive in which was probably, the first time many of the sea creatures saw divers. The current this time was approaching Cozumel speed.
Our last day of diving was on what is in my opinion, the best wreck in the Keys. The Eagle lies on her side in 110 feet of water and broken in half. This wreck has it all. The Eagle has abundant sea life plus the look and feel of a real wreck (although it too was sunk as an artificial reef in 1985). This time only a slight surface current prevailed. It was almost too easy.
And, did I mention that Kip also changed the tanks for us after very dive? And, that Divers City has storage for your gear and fresh water rinse tanks? Camera and mask buckets on board the boat (Diversity) were also standard equipment. I will not mention the exact cost per dive but I will say that I would be willing to pay more for the type of service and professionalism rendered.
It was very hard to say good bye to Key Largo.
My wife (CindyB) and I needed a short vacation to recharge our batteries. One of the easiest ways to do this was a trip to the Florida Keys. Key Largo in particular. If you like wrecks and warm water this is the place.
The major chain motel/hotel rates at this time of year are for deep pockets only. We checked out and finally choose to stay at the Amoray (Amy Slate) dive resort (MM 103). There is a room and a price for any budget. The resort rooms were neat and cleaned daily. All rooms have air conditioning and many with an ocean (gulf) view. Lots of hot water for showers and a gear locker to store your wet/rinsed gear. They have a catamaran that frequents mostly the local reefs.
We basically used the Amoray resort as a place to sleep. We accomplished all our diving with Divers City (MM 90.5). This dive shop is own and operated by a former Pittsburgh diver, Barbara Froelich. For your reference, check out the WEB site:
www.diverscityusa.com
Divers City has everything that an experienced diver would need. Nitrox, fast boat and no crowds (or snorklers). You simply show up and set up your tanks (steel or AL are available) and either Barbara or Kip Hoover (the captain of the dive boat) will lug them and all your dive gear you could possibly bring with you to the boat moored at the rear of her shop. The shop also has excellent gear for rent including doubles and serves up tri-mix for those who present poof of training. Divers City also allows experienced divers to dive your profile. They also allow you to do Jersey style diving by doing repetitive dives on the same or other wrecks (compared to most other shops who dump divers on the shallow reefs for a second dive).
Dive day one took us to the wreck of the Duane. This is an artificial reef wreck of a USA Coast Guard cutter. It is a mature wreck and is one of the best warm water wrecks on the east coast. She lies upright in 120 feet of water about ten miles offshore (a very short ride with Divers City boat cruising at 22 MPH).
Now, for the fun and challenging part. The wreck lies near the Gulf Stream and currents are a fact of life. There was about a two plus knot flow, so Kip had us hot dropped on the mooring buoy. If you missed the line he would eventually pick you up again for a second shot.
We had four divers that day and two of us hit the line. CindyB and I were buddied up with the proverbial third buddy (the other diver was a solo diver with a very large camera. The cameraman and I made it to the line but CindyB and the other diver just missed. They were very lucky in that the viz was excellent and the current was flowing from bow to stern (we were dropped on the bow buoy). They both did a free descent and eventually we all enjoyed the dive of a lifetime.
Our second dive was a drift dive on Crockers Reef. It was not Cozumel but we saw plenty of underwater life including a large southern ray. We were also going to do a Night dive on the Duane but called it because of the current.
The next day of diving took us to the Spiegel Grove. It was Memorial Day and for the first time ever in my experiences, there were several unused mooring lines available. As usual, the current was strong. Kip backed the boat up to the mooring buoy and we entered by grabbing the stern mooring line. This would be a drift dive and Kip would pick us up on the bow!
To make another dive story short, we did two drift dives on the S.G. We were able to see the entire length of the ship twice. The pick up on the bow involved floating free from the mooring buoy and Kip did a rolling recovery very nicely. Needless to say, my confidence diving in harsh currents soared. That night we did a Night dive on the Duane. This is was my second Night dive on this ship and it never fails to excite me. The currents had not changed, but with the experiences gained, this was standard procedures for me and CindyB.
The next dive day was supposed to take us to the Bibb. This is the sister cutter of the Duane and lies on its side in 130 feet of water. Again, the currents were raging and the bow buoy was missing. We could have shot up a lift bag on the bow but, that would violate sound safety procedures. Instead, we did the Duane again. The current was probably a bit faster but the dive went off with everyone making the drop and hitting the line. As usual, Kip did a rolling pick up off the bow buoy. Our second was a deep (80 to 90 foot) drift dive in which was probably, the first time many of the sea creatures saw divers. The current this time was approaching Cozumel speed.
Our last day of diving was on what is in my opinion, the best wreck in the Keys. The Eagle lies on her side in 110 feet of water and broken in half. This wreck has it all. The Eagle has abundant sea life plus the look and feel of a real wreck (although it too was sunk as an artificial reef in 1985). This time only a slight surface current prevailed. It was almost too easy.
And, did I mention that Kip also changed the tanks for us after very dive? And, that Divers City has storage for your gear and fresh water rinse tanks? Camera and mask buckets on board the boat (Diversity) were also standard equipment. I will not mention the exact cost per dive but I will say that I would be willing to pay more for the type of service and professionalism rendered.
It was very hard to say good bye to Key Largo.
