We met at the dock at 7:30, and shortly after 8 we were on our way. So many people showed up for the dive, that we were split onto 2 boats. I rode on a roomy 34-foot catamaran with only 3 other divers, 2 crew members, and 2 bubble-watchers (one of whom was my wife). We enjoyed a leisurely 25-minute ride out to Delray Ledges. The trip was wonderful: the sun was out, and there were no waves at all.
Upon arriving at Delray Ledges, we did a backward roll into the water and descended to 62 feet. From the sandy bottom, a 10-to-15-foot ledge emerged. We followed the ridge north about 1/4-mile, peeking under the overhang. Under the ledge, I spotted 4 lobsters in about 5 minutes. Later, my buddy and I spotted a moray eel crawling the reef (I thought they only wandered the reef at night), several large barracuda, and several massive balls of schooling reef fish. Once the ledge disappeared into the sand, we turned around and followed the current back, made our ascent, and climbed back on the boat. I spent the next hour eating Nutter Butters, chatting with the crew, and enjoying the sun. As we motored to the next site, we saw countless flying fish and even two dolphins feeding.
After our surface interval, we pulled on our dive gear and backward-rolled into the water. Following the anchor line down 85 feet, we headed to the Bud Bar. Frankly, I don't usually get too excited about wreck dives, but I thought this one was marvelous.
Upon reaching the wreck, my buddy and I turned south and headed to the bow of the boat. The wreck is in remarkable shape and is totally encrusted with coral life like blue tunicates, and rope and vase sponges. Above the ship, we saw half a dozen barracuda; inside the ship, there were dozens of reef fish, as well as one huge, 150-pound Jewfish. As we circled the bow and headed north, I noticed a lot of monofilament on the wreck. Being careful not to destroy any coral growth, I removed one particularly long, fresh section of line (with three nasty-looking hooks!) and took it with me. We circled the stern of the boat, headed back to where we started, and entered one of the two purpose-cut swim-throughs. As soon as he saw us, the Jewfish darted under the wreck. After exploring inside the wreck, we checked out some of the upper sections of the ship, and then returned to the anchor line. We took a two-minute safety stop at 50 feet and then another three-minute stop at 15 feet. There was just enough current to make the anchor line helpful. We surfaced, climbed on the boat, broke down our gear, and headed back to shore. I was in my car by 12:05.
All ina ll, the day was great, the water was warm, and the dives were easy. It was a great way to spend Memorial Day weekend. Who else went diving?
