We arrived in Key West at about 3:00 in the afternoon and found some of the other divers already loaded and waiting for our arrival. Of course for Dave Kenny and I it was more than just loading equipment it was making sure the Gas Blending station was loaded and ready. The final arrangements and filling would have to wait until after dinner at a local restaurant, the anchor.
Captain Frank had intended to have the bank system and blending system completely set-up but the previous day was spent making sure the generator would work, remneung the temporary generator from the roof and replacing with the 54 bottles of gas that we would need for this 5 day trip.
This left the final assembly to us. The task was daunting because all of the diver’s bottles were wither full or contained the wrong mix of gas *mostly air and we would need trimix). So the bottles were drained and the first fills – deco cylinders were started. While Kenny and Dave filled these bottles, I continued plumbing the deco station, adding the quick disconnect fittings, changing some of the other fittings and getting ready for the next phase. We were lucky that Capt. Frank had filled the bank with Trimix prior to leaving Houston. This made this part of the job easier. Of course Kenny and Dave still had to work
Perhaps the best report of this trip comes from Captain Frank’s trip report:
This trip ROCKED!!! Mike Barnett, Richie Kohler, the crew at Oceanic Ventures, and 12 loyal customers joined us for the Deep Week wreck trek off of Dry Tortugas and Key West. As with all plans, some things changed from the original, but holy cow, what a great week we had. We boarded as usual after a great meal at the Rusty Anchor, with at least 50 tons of rebreathers, doubles, stage bottles, deco bottles, 24 cylinders of helium, 30 cylinders of oxygen, 10 tubs of sorb, and a partridge in a pear tree. We set out at 9 PM for the wreck of the Rhein.
We arrived on-station at the Rhein at 0700 on the 17th. We threw a spot buoy, Mike and Richie swam down the up-line and tied into the wreck, and we were anchored above the wreck by 0800. The divers waited for Mike and Richie to come back up with a conditions report, then splashed onto the Rhein. The Rhein was sunk by Dutch and British warships before the US had entered World War II. A complete description of the sinking is available in Mike Barnett’s book Shipwrecks of the Sunshine State. Richard Mork shot some amazing video of a baitball above the wreck, and Richie returned with a square porthole to start the collecting. Most people did not come prepared to collect (no tools, no plastic bins), so a large pouty face was collectively seen. By the second dive, the crew was starting to get the program figured out regarding fills, etc. After pulling the grapple, we motored off to the Araby Maid.
The second day was spent on the Araby Maid. The Araby Maid was sunk in a collision at the turn of the last century, and was a wood over steel sailing ship. The weather was slightly choppy and the Spree was hanging by her stern to the seas making for a uncomfortable ride and a grumpy captain. Richie again started with a brass something or another, and, on his second dive, came up with a matching chamber pot, pitcher, and butter dish, probably from the captain’s cabin. OK, it isn’t a butter dish, I don’t know what it is, but it’s freakin’ cool. China fever had hit the Spree. So we moved onto the U-boat U-2513.
The U-2513 was sunk with Hedgehogs and Weapon Alfa’s (ASROCS for the old navy guys) in the 50’s during the cold war. We captured the 2513 from the Germans and brought it back to the US as a war prize. No collecting is allowed on the submarine as it is still owned by the US Navy, but it is penetrable, has cool placards on the torpedo tubes, has some monster goliath grouper and a big baitball on the conning tower, and is really really cool to boot. After 2 dives, we were supposed to go on to the S-16, but china fever had taken hold, and the vote was to return to the Araby Maid.
Day 4 found us anchored over the Araby Maid once again, with divers wanting to borrow gloves and prybars (no!). Even without, some real finds were discovered. Mike found a porthole with glass intact, Richie found a globe from a hurricane lantern, Terry found an intact red globe from a lantern of some sort, many brass door locks, hinges, and many pieces of catch and release junk were brought back to the Spree. The junk was released unharmed. Wade and the scooter got a little misplaced, but not lost!!
Day 5 found us at dawn on the USS Wilkes Barre off of Key West. When we arrived, conditions were slick calm, no current, and a beautiful anticipated dive. After dropping the anchor, current picked up to a knot and a half, and visibility dropped to about 25 feet. The anchor was hauled and the dive turned into a live boat. Some divers did not understand “drop hard” and missed the wreck altogether. Some hit the bow section, and some got to dive the whole thing (by Braille). After 1, most divers were ambivalent about a second dive, and the rest were drinking beer. Off to the dock we went, looking for more beer, as well as getting home a little earlier. The guests universally had a great time, most signed up for one of three trips planned for next year, including a rebreather-only trip to the Key West Ghost Fleet, max depth 420 feet.
Capt. Frank
M/V Spree
Stock Island, FL
Not much more can be said except I cannot wait until next year. Maybe I can even dice more!
