Itinerary

Day 1 Arrive in Key West. Taxi from the airport to our Marina (less than 10 min. away), and board the exploration support vessel Tiburon by 5pm. Settle into your assigned cabin; join the crew for orientation and a safety briefing at 5:30pm. Snacks, appetizers and beverage served onboard. Enjoy dinner at one of Key West’s fine restaurants or at our Marina. Choose to spend the evening onboard or explore our famous nightlife. The boat will spend the night at the dock and departure is early the next morning.

Day 2  Our diving day begins on a local wreck called the Cayman Salvager, in 95 feet of water. Built in 1937, the Cayman is 187 feet long, with a beam of 37 feet. Her most distinct feature is the cable pulley built into her bow. After lunch we travel to our second dive of the day, the Adolphus Busch. Resting in 40 to 100 feet of water off of Looe Key. The main deck is at 80 feet and the ship can be seen very comfortably from there. There is a 450 Lbs Goliath grouper living on the wreck that is frequently seen. A shallower dive at beautiful Looe key, wraps up our day. Our anchorage tonight is on the reef. A night dive here is also optional.                                                                             

Day 3  This morning finds us moored to the Thunderbolt off the island of Marathon.  This wreck's deepest point is 110 feet deep with its shallowest at 75.  The ship's hull is 220 feet long with a forecastle and cruiser stern.  The  most prominent features are a horizontal cable handling reel which lies at 90 feet and is centered on the end of the forecastle deck and the remains of the ship's superstructure including the observation deck located at 90 feet.  Our next dive will take us to the Eagle just off of Islamorada. The Eagle has a number of interesting structural features that make it a notable dive attraction.  A large chain on the port bow exits the hawse pipe and continues a considerable distance before disappearing into the sand. This wreck was made even more interesting after it was broken in half by Hurricane George. We’ll end this and each successive day with a spectacular dive on one of the local reefs, (Captain’s choice). The nights are spent in a secure anchorage.

Day 4   Wake up moored on the wreck of the Duane. Exploring the beautiful 300 plus foot ex US Coast Guard cutter is an amazing experience. On a clear day, the outline of the Duane’s intact hull can be seen from above. The mast and crow's nest protruding high above the hull can be seen at the surface. The hull structure, completely intact with the original rudders, screws, railings, ladders and ports makes an impressive display. The next wreck on our list will be the Benwood. The Benwood lies between 25 to 48 feet of depth. In 1942 she sank after a collision with The Robert C Tuttle.  The remains of the Benwood are scattered over a wide area.  The bow of the ship is its most distinctive feature.  The first deck has been punctured in many places forming a network of nooks and crannies perfect for fish habitat.  Divers can peer through these holes into the cargo hold and see the space where ore was once carried

Day 5  The day is spent on the 510-foot long wreck of the Spiegel Grove. Here we’ll do 2 dives, limited only by our bottom time. The USS Spiegel Grove was a landing ship dock and is now the largest vessel ever intentionally sunk as an artificial reef. About 400 feet of the 510 ft length is accessible at a depth of 48-50 ft. and most of its features can be explored at depths between 50 and 85ft. Since May 17, 2002 many thousand’s of divers have descended upon the USS Spiegel Grove. Within that time, many species of undersea flora and fauna have taken up permanent residence on her decks and bulkheads. Divers are usually awed by her size. We love diving here once a year and seeing what’s new. The ship has been designated as a multi-level dive site, meaning that there are various levels of expertise involved in diving her. After this day the group can decide which wreck to revisit and spend day 6 on. Tonight we’ll finish up with a dive at the John Pennekamp coral reef national state park.

Day 6 Heading back toward home we’ll revisit the group’s favorite wreck for yet another great day underwater. Afterwards, we’ll end our diving in the early afternoon and travel back to our homeport of Key West. Enjoy a farewell dinner onboard as we head home. Depending on the group’s choice we’ll arrive in Key West in the evening or early next morning.

 Day 7 A continental breakfast is served before departure from the Tiburon by 11AM.

Expedition Highlights

• Dry Tortugas Excursions

• Explore the recreational wrecks of the Florida Keys including the Cayman Salvage Master, Adolphus Busch, Thunderbolt, Eagle, Duane, Benwood and the USS Spiegel Grove.

• Multiple dives each day including afternoon reef dives on some of the best reefs in the United States.

• United States Cell phone coverage all week. Stay in touch with your family and the office.

• Instructors refer or bring and train your students in warm tropical waters on interesting wrecks. Come in a day early and do shallow, first day training or work with our staff to coordinate your training needs within the scope of the week's trip. Call or email for more details. Let us help you accomplish your goals.

Seeking sponsors for Spring 2005 contact our Project Development Team