Today Sirena headed north to the Danny McCauley Memorial Reef for the first dive followed by North Double Ledges for the second dive. Conditions were quite pleasing with 60-70+ feet of visibility underwater, 77 degree water temperature, calm seas, and a very mild north current on both dives.
The choice to do a wreck and a reef could not have been better. We started off the day with a dive on the Danny McCauley Memorial Reef. This wreck, which was sunk in February 2013, has an incredible amount of coral growth on it. It’s a haven for all kinds of tropical fish, too. A number of goliath groupers surrounded the wreck. Barracudas swarmed overhead. The group of divers explored the wreck for a while before drifting to the other wrecks on this dive.
The tug and barge had numerous goliath groupers on it, too. A short drift to the Spud Barge wreck also had its share of goliath groupers. Overall, over a dozen goliath groupers were encountered on this dive. That doesn’t even include the reef shark and the tons of other marine life we encountered along the way.
For our second dive we headed south to North Double Ledges. This gorgeous reef, under the sparkling clear blue water, was a real treat to dive. Tropical fish swarmed through every nook and cranny of the reef. Traveling off the regular path, a couple of us made it to one spot where the marine life exploded in every color of the rainbow. In the middle of this coral reef oasis, we observed the largest black coral I have seen in the area; measuring at over 5 feet. It was a real treat to see this unique coral and I hope to see it flourish in the coming years.
A day of diving the wrecks and reef in Palm Beach with crystal clear blue water and warm water is hard to beat for a winter day. Just another day in paradise. Come join us for the best scuba diving in Florida!
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