Trip Report: Upper Florida Keys 04/18 - 14/20/2008

Capt Gary

Hey everyone, just wanted to jump in and say we really enjoyed having ya'll down diving with us last week and if was a pleasure meeting all of you. Good times were had by all, as shown in some of the posted pics.....don't now what that high five was all about though.

Never the less we got 10 new CCR divers certified in the pool, thanks to Ted, and a number of current CCR divers offering their vast wealth of knowledge. OK maybe a little poking was occurring between the various brands of rebreathers, but it was all in fun.

We appreciated all giving us a try and hope to see you all again. If we can be of service for any future dives, please don't hesitate contacting us. We're here to serve you.

Good Diving,
Capt Gary
Conch Republic Divers / Treasure Divers TV
(305)852-1655

diverreb

Not much to add to the great reports & photo's. I just got back this morning & had a fantastic time. The weather was near perfect. No rain & calm seas for two weeks. We only had one day of strong currents on the Eagle. Other than that, calm seas & warm clear water, although some of the locals might disagree..... Seems they like 100' vis and 80 degree water.... I was very happy with 75 degrees & 60' or better of vis most days.

Marine life is alive & well in the Keys. Shallow reefs are vibrant & loaded with photo opportunities. The wrecks have their fair share as well, in addition to some larger visitors.

Gary, Brenda, Dean and the entire crew at Conch Republic couldn't have been more accommodating.... Unless they loaded, unloaded & cleaned my gear. Something to aim for next time.

All went well with the exception of the next to last day which I'm chalking up to too much nitrogen built up in my system.... You know that mellow relaxed feeling you have after diving for eight or nine days in a row.....

OK... we get to the shallow reef and I'm getting ready to gear up & get into the Breather. It's flat calm... I for some unknown reason went up to talk to some one at the front of the boat... I'll just be a second, no waves... no need to re-bungee the unit... I'll only be a few seconds... Next thing you know a gentle roller came through & crash... The O2ptima took a header off the bench onto the deck. Ouch! Being the "Expedition" quality unit that it is, no damage was done. I checked it out and after confirming it was fine, jumped in and hooked my Bailout bottle on. First thing I heard was what sounded like a rush of water coming from somewhere. My first thought was the Canister was flooding, even though it passed a quick + - test. The unit was breathing normally, then I remembered all the stories of the EAC's still working when wet. Pretty impressive, I thought.... Then I realized the sound I heard was coming from the bilge pump emptying right above me.

That reminds me of another nameless O2ptima diver who suffered the same fate over the weekend. Again, no major damage, just needed to replace the short hose, which was done in about five minutes.... Would have actually taken a minute, but four minutes were spent looking for a small dropped nut, that is very tiny on a large deck. Eagle Eye Cogan found it.

Back to my day... After a great dive I was last on the boat and was putting away my gear.... Again remaining in La La Land, Capt. George took role & I was chatting about the dive and slowly putting my gear away when the boat starts to leave... One problem... My gear line with Bailout was still in the water. It had taken a few wraps around the prop shaft, but no damage was done to the prop or my gear, except for a small cut on the rubber valve wheel. I believe it was Jay Russell who valiantly jumped in & freed the line. They aren't used to gear lines there & asked if I would put it on the back cleat the next day.

I'm glad it's all behind me now & I'll probably never hear about it again from my dear close dive buddies..... Well hopefully they'll get tired of ragging on me after a year or two!!!!

It was really cool meeting Adrian & Terry and diving with all my old & newly certified KISS rebreather buddies.

Great trip.... Can't wait to do it again.

Richie

mydive

Yes, Richie, you were talking to me showing me a tooth of some fish you picked up during the previous dive when your rebreather rolled over.... Glad to hear that your rebreather was OK though .

Hi, everybody, this is Masao from MD. Thanks everyone for diving with me (or riding a boat with me) during my 10-day diving trip with Conch Republic (I racked up a total of 23 OC dives..) . It was quite unusual and interesting to have quite a few rebreather divers (and only a handful OC divers in some cases) in the same boat almost everyday for these my 10 days of diving!! . Adrian, Ted, Tom, Richie, Steve, and Terry, I enjoyed talking with you guys about rebreather/tech stuffs. Thanks, Jack John, Tom, Kevin and Su, for diving with me. These rebreathers looked so cool, that's for sure.. After I came back on Saturday, I briefly talked to my wife about the possibility of getting a rebreather someday... well, due to $$$, it doesn't look like a rebreather is coming to my home any time soon. But I will keep checking this forum in order to come up with good reasons for having to have one . ("BTW the following didn't work: "Hey, it's extremely unusual to to encounter so many rebreather guys in one trip... this must be a calling... so I must get one.... "....I have to come up with a different one.... )

Adrian; your photos are very very impressive.

Ted, I will try to call you this summer for diving with the OC diver!

Capt. Gary, Brenda and the entire crew at Conch Republic; thanks a lot for the excellent diving operation!!! Despite the unusual setting (i.e., a bunch of rebreather guys ), you guys made me feel very comfortable by providing well organized operations in a friendly, yet very professional atmosphere. That was quite impressive (especially the manner you handle those rebreather guys) Your operation was recommended by my tech dive buddy. Yes, indeed, you guys really rock!! And the dives were excellent, both wreck and reef. Hope to come back there with my family some time soon!!

Masao

diverreb

Masao, it was nice meeting you too..... It's always good to dive with someone who is enthusiastic as you were about each dive.... So much so that you extended your stay down there.

Hope to see you this summer on Ted's boat.

Richie

dvrstev

Yea Richie I take the day off and you screw up. I also had a great time.

Hard to write while I'm driving.

Masao-son it was a pleasure diving with you.

Adrian when you guys past us on Sunday it was I who yelled at you.

Steve