Florida Keys in early July

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CJB - 17 Mar 2007 06:20 GMT

My wife and I are going to Florida to try diving the Keys. Been all over the
Caribbean over the past 6 years so we thought we would try some warm water
USA diving. I'm getting to old to dive Monterey anymore. Too much gear.
Anyway, we arrive in Miami at 5:00 AM Saturday and depart the following
Sunday early evening. The plan is to rent a car and head to Key West on
Saturday then work our way back up the keys over the next ten days. Looking
for recommendations on where to stay and who to dive with. 2-3 Star clean
hotel is all that's required. Would like to be able to walk to a beach in
the afternoon after diving. As for the diving I'm more into the reef and
animals than the wrecks but would consider a wreck dive or two.

Thanks in advance for your recommendations

Chris

chrisb1erg@pacbell.net

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Marshall Karp - 20 Mar 2007 20:42 GMT

Sounds great and you should have alot of fun. Never a dull moment in Key
West. My wife and I were there in June 2006 and I dove with Dive Key West.
I thought they were really friendly and gave good customer service.

Here is my Key West Joe's Tug Dive video so you can see how things were last
year:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6463960296284954241&hl=en

As for the beach area, Fort Jefferson Park was the nicest beach on the
island. Hope this helps.

> My wife and I are going to Florida to try diving the Keys. Been all over
> the Caribbean over the past 6 years so we thought we would try some warm
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
>
> chrisb1erg@pacbell.net

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CJB - 24 Mar 2007 00:11 GMT

Thanks for the information. Looks like you had fun making the video.

I ended up bucking with South Point divers which is near the B&B we are
staying in. Dive Key West is way on the other side of town.
I'll post a trip report and let you know how the trip goes.

Chris

> Sounds great and you should have alot of fun. Never a dull moment in Key
> West. My wife and I were there in June 2006 and I dove with Dive Key
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]
>>
>> chrisb1erg@pacbell.net

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dsziede@hotmail.com - 24 Mar 2007 16:32 GMT

My opinion is the best dives are in Key Largo. Key West has better
night life. If your main thrust is diving, stay at the Holiday Inn in
Key Largo, and dive with The Minnow. The Minnow is a fast 6-pack. Max
of 6 divers instead of the 30-diver cattle boats. There is a week's
worth of diving in Key Largo alone. The big wrecks, Spiegle Grove,
Duane and Tibbs are usually in current. I'm 64 and have no trouble
with the current even schlepping a video camera. There are plenty of
shallow dives for the second tank. The coral in the keys is abit
shopworn, but you will make up for it in big fish. They actually
enforce the fishing limits in the marine sanctuary, unlike most of the
Caribbean.

Pennencamp Park should satisfy your beach/snorkle/touristing needs.

If you can push your trip to after Memorial day, but before school
closes the Keys will be relatively uncrowded. Plenty of good
resturants. Din's Diner at mile 100 for a belly-busting breakfast.

Dick

>My wife and I are going to Florida to try diving the Keys. Been all over the
>Caribbean over the past 6 years so we thought we would try some warm water
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
>
>chrisb1erg@pacbell.net

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CJB - 25 Mar 2007 00:17 GMT

Thanks for the suggestions. This is our first trip so I wanted to try a
number of sites. We arrive at 5:00 AM
in Miami and will make a mad dash down to Key West then spend the week
working our way back up the
keys. We are in Key West for 3 days, Marathon for 3 days and Islamorada for
3 days.

Chris

> My opinion is the best dives are in Key Largo. Key West has better
> night life. If your main thrust is diving, stay at the Holiday Inn in
[quoted text clipped - 34 lines]
>>
>>chrisb1erg@pacbell.net

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Ed - 25 Mar 2007 11:58 GMT

I agree... Key largo vis in July is MUCH better than KW... KW is a mix
of west coast gulf and east coast ocean... East ocean is MUCH better...

marathon is OK but I prefer Keylargo and Islamorada.

KW is the BEST nightlife.

> Thanks for the suggestions. This is our first trip so I wanted to try a
> number of sites. We arrive at 5:00 AM
[quoted text clipped - 43 lines]
>>>
>>>chrisb1erg@pacbell.net

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Lee Bell - 25 Mar 2007 21:39 GMT

>I agree... Key largo vis in July is MUCH better than KW... KW is a mix of
>west coast gulf and east coast ocean... East ocean is MUCH better...

Key Largo is more reliable in the summer, but not because of the mix of
waters. Gulf and Atlantic waters mix throughout the Keys. The difference
is prevailing winds. They are more often out of the south in the summer,
blowing directly on shore for Key West. In the winter, when the winds more
often blow out of the north, Key West can be more reliable.

> marathon is OK but I prefer Keylargo and Islamorada.

Marathon is every bit as good as Key Largo or Islamorada and far less
impacted by hoards of divers driving down from the north.

> KW is the BEST nightlife.

That it does.

Lee

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