Looe Key and Key
West Weekend was Fantastic!
Our annual weekend sojourn to the lower keys was amazing this year with
perfect conditions for both days of diving. Our trip started out with a tour of The Turtle Hospital on Saturday morning,
followed by a beautiful dive in the Looe Key National Marine Sanctuary on Saturday afternoon. Sunday morning took us to
the wreck of the General Hoyt S. Vandenburg in Key West where we experienced near-perfect conditions: 100 foot viz, zero
current and crystal clear warm water. A fabulous time was had by all!
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Active Divers Turtle Hospital Tour - from left: Jean Gruss,
Angelica Cookson, John Davis, Rachel Davis, Amber Laureano, Kyle Weisenberg. Bottom row: patients from the hospital
including the famous Bubble Butt. |
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Scenes from Looe Key: Photos courtesy of (top
row) Rachel Davis, (bottom row) Leah Bamford. |
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Happy Divers Happy Hour at Looe Key Tiki Bar.
Clockwise from left: Roger Bach, Natalie Thomas, Leah Bamford, Al Menendez, Rachel Davis, Angelica Cookson, John Davis, Z
Mayer, Lisa Littleton, Kyle Weisenberg, Amber Laureano. |
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Reef Report
Saturday, August 7
Looe Key with Looe Key Reef Resort
Dive 1 - West End: depth 26, viz 40
ft, water temp 87 degrees. A gorgeous day for Looe Key and we were reminded how beautiful this marine sanctuary is. Large
schools of grunts, large green moray eels, nurse shark, reef shark, parrotfish (blue, rainbow and large midnight ones),
blue and brown chromis, lobsters, large stands of healthy elkhorn coral on top of the fingers.
Dive 2 - Towers: depth 28, viz 40 ft, water temp 85 degrees. Large stands of CRF-planted staghorn
coral clustered together harboring many juvenille fish, trunkfish, lobsters, large green moray eels, schools of grunts,
bright blue parrotfish in large schools, large healthy sea fans with flamingo tongues, abundant soft corals. These reefs
are much healthier than Key Largo and it was a real treat to dive here.
-- Active Divers Vice President and Safety Officer Rachel Davis
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Top
- all aboard the Dream Cat in Key West headed out to the Vandenburg. Front row (from left): Amber Laureano, Darlene
Rodriguez, Rachel Davis, Kyle Weisenberg, Z Mayer, Lisa Littleton. Back row (from left): Jean Gruss, Matthew Lessly,
Mike Lessly, Angelica Cookson, John Davis, Leah Bamford, Al Menendez, Roger Bach.
Bottom: scenes of the Vandenburg Wreck: Roger Bach on Duval Street; Rachel Davis over the smoke stack. Photos courtesy
of Lisa Littleton. |
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Reef Report
Sunday, August 2
Vandenburg Wreck with Lost Reef Adventures
Dives
1 & 2 - Vandenburg Wreck (double dip) Seas flat, depth 100', Vis 100+, no current, sea temp 84
degrees. This was one of the most epic Vandy's in years. Due to the clarity and lack of current, you could see all the
way up the line to the dive boat 100' above. Also the superior conditions made it possible to go all the way around
the wreck. Sightings included schooling chromis, porkfish, lemon shark, green turtle.
-- Active Divers Vice President and Safety Officer Rachel Davis
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Active Divers Association’s 2021 Coral Restoration Program
Space is limited to sign up for this year’s Coral Restoration program, to be held on Sept.
11. Act now to save your spot. This is your opportunity to participate in our ongoing efforts to restore the reefs of
the Florida Keys to their former color and beauty many of us remember from years past. After fifteen years of
partnering with the Coral Restoration Foundation, for this year’s program we are working with Islamorada Conservation and
Restoration Foundation (“I.CARE”), a team of scientists and interns dedicated to the restoration of Islamorada’s reefs.
Our divers will start the day by meeting at Key Dives, and at 8:30 a.m. we will visit the
nearby onshore coral nursery to see the specimens being nurtured there, including brain corals, a variety of bouldering star
corals, elkhorn and staghorn varieties. At the nursery we will experience a tutorial on corals and the threats to our
reefs and receive training in a hands-on workshop on how to transplant baby corals.
Lunch will be provided as part of the program from the delicious selections offered by Mango
Mike’s Café at Bud N’ Mary’s Marina. Then we will meet back at the dive shop for our two-tank dive transplanting baby
corals and maintaining previous out-planting sites. Whether you have been part of Active Divers’ past coral programs
or this is your first time, Sept. 11 will be one of your most rewarding days spent underwater.
All of this for only $100 per person. Sign up now!
Roy D. Wasson Conservation Projects Director
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IMPORTANT DIVE WEATHER INFORMATION
Before departing for the dive site, confirm weather conditions with Lon at (305) 251-4975
or with the designated Safety Officer. It is the responsibility of the member to call. Because of the large numbers
of divers involved we are not able call you with weather information. For morning dives, call between 6 and 10 p.m.
the night before the dive. For afternoon dives, call between 9 and 10 a.m. the morning of the dive
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Saturday, September 4
Goliath Grouper Aggregation - Advanced
Walker's
Dive Charters
West Palm Beach
Check in at 12:00 noon
SOLD OUT
Reply to get on the waitlist |
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Saturday, September 11
Coral Restoration Experience
Key
Dives
Full day experience - training, dives and lunch included!
Check in at 8:30 am
SPACE AVAILABLE
BOOK
THIS EXPERIENCE |
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Sunday, September 12
Goliath Grouper Aggregation Castor Wreck - Advanced
Loggerhead
Charters - Boynton Beach
Check in at 12:00 noon
SOLD OUT
Reply to get on the waitlist |
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NOT ALL DIVES ARE
FULL!!!
We have space on many dives, and we encourage you to get on
the waitlist for those that are full. We often have last minute cancellations. Reply to this email to be added to any dive
listed as full.
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These dives currently have space available:
- September 11 - Coral Restoration in Islamorada
- 5 spaces left
- September 26 - Spiegel Grove - 3 spaces left
- October 2 - Boynton Beach - 3 spaces left
- October 16 - Duane with Island Ventures - 3
spaces left
- October 31 - Spiegel Grove Double Dip - 1
space left
- November 6 - Key Largo with Island Ventures - 1
space left
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