Our first dive was early afternoon on Sat., diving the wreck of the Benwood. Hopped in about 2:15 and stayed down for about 45 minutes. Water temp was 88 deg. and my max depth was 39'. We saw lots of parrotfish, lots of little fish I can't yet identify, and some nice looking lobsters, which I have no problem identifying, as well as a couple crabs. A 6' nurse shark meandered his way through the wreck. I also saw a sea turtle heading for the surface to take a breath.
For the second dive of the day, we headed to French Reef. Pool opened at 3:30. My bottom time was 50 minutes with a max depth of 35'. Water temp. was 86 deg. This dive began with some underwater navigation excercises. I saw many of the same fish as on the Benwood, but the non-animal life is much more lush with all the coral...how beautiful...like a lush tropical forest underwater.
After our French Reef dive, we headed back to Amy Slate's, where we had about an hour and a half before before meeting back at the boat at 7 to load up for our night dive, returning to the wreck of the Benwood. Upon battery and light inspection, we were issued our glow sticks and headed back out, cruising gingerly through the mangrove fortified channel and into open seas. This was a very serene part of the day, as most folks were heading home for the night. Once at the site, we had some time to just enjoy the view, as the sun made it's slow descent into the sea, where we were soon to follow.
With lights ablaze and glowsticks glowing, we descended into the evening water above the Benwood at about 8:25 and spent 62 minutes below the surface. Max depth was 45' with an 87 deg. water temp. This was a much different experience than the earlier Benwood dive. It was nice having some familiarity with the site, as I can see how a night dive can become very disorienting. But this dive was absolutely incredible, with the exception of some divers forgetting that just because their light isn't in their own face..... Anyways, once my buddy and I were able to put some space between us and the group, it became a very peaceful, yet explorative experience. Shining the light into the ship openings was quite eerie, as I imagined those who went down with her (even though I now know nobody went down with her. the ship was consedered a loss the day after colliding with the Tuttle...but it sounded good at the time). I saw lots of sleeping Parrotfish, nestled within beams of the hull. I even saw an octopus making it's way across a sandy area. Slithering across another sandy flat area, I watched some kind of eel. I actually had my light turned off for much of the dive, as there was enough ambient light from my buddy, as well as other divers. What a great experience. Completing my ascent, my head left the open water below and arrived into a sea of night sky, complete with sparkling stars and the near full moon's reflection on the water's surface. A perfect end to a perfect day of diving.
The next morning, Sunday, we met at the boat at 7 am, loaded up and headed out again for our last two dives of the weekend. Our first dive was our deep dive. We were to dive the USCG Cutter Duane. For this dive, we were to take slates down with us in order to complete a math problem at depth, experimenting with the effects of narcosis on our critical thinking machines. While still heading out to the Duane, we completed one of the two math problems. Once moored to the bouy, we were instructed that due to a RIPPIN current, and I do mean RIPPIN, we were to enter the water with BCs deflated, so as not to end up in South Beach. We had to do a rapid descent. It was really exciting. Some people may have been nervous, but I was loving it. It was a good challenge. Hand over hand, head first and into the current, I pulled myself to the bottom, all along contending with the whiteout that was a blizzard of bubbles coming up at me. What Fun!!! The current did not subside at any depth. The only protection from it was the ship itself. Once on her deck, we completed our second math problem. No problem. That's not to say I wasn't experiencing the effects of narcosis. I probably was. But I managed to add up the 5 three digit numbers correctly and quickly. We then followed our group leader up and over part of the ship for a quick little tour. After that, it was back to the line to begin our ascent. Wow, what a current. Did I mention the current? It gets windy down there for sure. Once our ascent began, we quickly ran into quite a traffic jam. I don't know why we stopped...I think someone may have been having some troubles up ahead, or wasn't quite sure what to do without the instructor holding their hand. But eventually we all made it back to the surface after a quick, but intense dive. I can't wait to go back and check this one out on my own. Many times I'm sure. Bottom time was 22 minutes. Max depth was 102', and water temp was a perfect 85 deg.
Our next, and sadly, final dive of the weekend was probably the livliest as far as underwater life goes. We dove Permit Ledge, which was our underwater naturalist dive. Water temp was again, a lovely 86 degrees. Bottom time was 72 minutes and a max depth of 33'. This reef system was absolutely lush, teeming with fish, plant life, and incredible corals. Again with slate's and pencils, my buddy and I began this dive finding a nice peaceful spot and parking it, remaining stationary so we could quietly observe and document the surrounding environment. After about 10 minutes, my slate was full and it was time to explore. I saw many of the same culprits as before, with the addition of a skeptical moray eel, peering out from under a large anchor from an 18th century spanish galleon. Very cool! It was nice to be at a depth where we could spend so long on the bottom. But as always, good things come to an end. From our 3M safety stop, we could see there was quite a surge at the surface, to about 8' below. Once breaching the surface, we greeted by a nice Key Largo down-pour. But alas, it did not bother me one bit. Conditions under the water were absolutely perfect. A perfect dive to end a perfect weekend. The ride back to Amy Slate's was a wet, chilly, and high spirited affair.
I am now an official card carrying NAUI Advanced SCUBA Diver. YAY ME!
Let's see if this works. Click this link for pics. http://www.singlediv...t=ST&f=8&t=1673
Attached Images
Edited by empyre180, 04 August 2004 - 05:16 PM.
