How about getting a tour of the Vandenberg while it is docked in Key West. Well Captain Scotty of Blue Iguana Charters and few others where lucky enough to be given a tour of the ship. He took lots of pictures, go check out the Photo Gallery on their site.
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Diving
The KeysNews and Bigshipwrecks.com report that the Vandenberg anchored south of Key West. The reports say are waiting until Wednesday morning to bring the ship in to the harbor and dock it near the Truman Annex.
The ship will be prepared for its voyage to the bottom of the sea over the next month at the dock. The plan is to sink the Vandenberg before June 1.
The KeysNews reports local divers in the Keys are brushing up on their skills in anticipation of the Vandenberg becoming Florida's newest artificial reef. Good for the dive industry, good for the local economy and a great way to watch a reef form and the environment it will create.
Thinking about planning a trip to dive it maybe July/August time frame, anybody want to come.
The Keys News and BigShipwrecks.com have reported the Vandenberg left Norfork Virginia on Sunday April 12 headed for Key West. Depending on the weather and seas it should arrive by the end of the week.
It was 43 degrees at the platforms, 30 feet down. I had two Open Water Student who wanted to get their Open Water Certification completed this weekend. It rainy, damp and cold on Saturday, Sunday was sunny but the chilly wind was blowing. They where troopers about getting this done. They drove down from New York on Easter weekend to complete their certs. Congratulations to Alissa and Brent; they are Certified Open Water Divers. Great job!
Okay, it was rainy, it was cold, it was muddy, but what better conditions to check out one of coolest dry suits on the market! There was a good turn out for those who wanted to try before you buy, several people came prepared to earn their Dry Suit Speciality certification. The quarry was 44 degrees, the air temp was in the high 50's and pleanty of mud to go around.
Saturday April 11 at 11 AM at Millbrook Quarry Whites Manufacturing maker of Whites Dry Suits will a have trailer full of Dry Suits available to try and dive!
Stop by the Shop get your Quarry pass (it will save you money VS buying at the gate) then join us to see all of the cool stuff that Whites Diving has to offer in dry suits; like their Fusion Dry Suit, that's what I am looking at.
Should be a lot of fun and with the Dry Suit you won't notice the chilly water temperature.
Look for updates and pics after the event.
Keys News.com and Big Shipwrecks.com reported the anchors for the Vandenberg arrived in Key West. The ship is supposed to be under way to Key West soon. They want her on the bottom before hurricane season starts, which is June 1. Can't wait! Great ship; will make a great reef.
Click on the Links above to read the articles.
Spent the weekend at the dive shop VIP-ing tanks, O2 cleaning tanks (lots of heavy lifting) and O2 cleaning valves.
The quarry opens for the regular season on April 4th. Yes it will be cold, not looking to splash in right away.
The last person to do a chilly willy dive in mid-march said the water was 44 degrees, I really need a dry suit.
Oh look - Virginia Scuba is having a Whites Drysuit Demo day on April 11th - hum a Fusion Drysuit would be nice...
Come check it out.
This weekend is where we really got down to business. Rescue skills assessment, thanks to my willing “victim” and my best dive buddy Megan; we grilled the divemaster candidate from ascent to exit. All in good fun helping Stephen to perfect his rescue skills to demonstration quality.
I ran Stephen through the dive skills several times as well. He is doing great, I am very impressed with his progress. Our class is moving right along.
Sunday morning back in the pool then one more class room secession Sunday afternoon and we will be finished the book work.
Want a great way to spend a few hours on a Sunday morning! How about signing up for a Scuba Tune up class? That is what Certified Diver Dan pictured above did. Dan is going to Turks and Cacios in a few weeks. We took a few hours to refresh his skills, which where great and we swam around the pool for a while to make sure he was comfortable with his gear and in the water.