Scuba Diving and Snorkeling
Diving and snorkeling on the offshore coral wrecks and reefs on a calm day can be very rewarding. Chances are excellent that you'll come face-to-face with a flood of tropical fish. One option is to find Fowey, Triumph, Long, and Emerald reefs in 10- to 15-foot dives that are perfect for snorkelers and beginning divers. On the edge of the continental shelf a little more than 3 miles out, these reefs are just a quarter-mile away from depths greater than 100 feet. Another option is to paddle around the tangled prop roots of the mangrove trees that line the coast, peering at the fish, crabs, and other creatures hiding there.
Perhaps the area's most unusual diving options are its artificial reefs. Since 1981, Miami-Dade County's Department of Environmental Resources Management has sunk tons of limestone boulders and a water tower, army tanks, and almost 200 boats of all descriptions to create a "wreckreational" habitat where divers can swim with yellow tang, barracudas, nurse sharks, snapper, eels, and grouper. The website offers an interactive map of wreck locations.
Divers Paradise of Key Biscayne. This complete dive shop and diving-charter service, next to the Crandon Park Marina, includes equipment rental and scuba instruction with PADI and NAUI affiliation. Half-day (four-hour) dive trips and snorkel trips are offered Tuesdays through Sundays. Crandon Park Marina, 4000 Crandon Blvd., Key Biscayne, Miami, Florida, 33149. 305/361–3483; www.keydivers.com. $75.
South Beach Dive and Surf. Dedicated to all things ocean, this PADI five-star dive shop offers multiple diving and snorkeling trips weekly, as well as surfboard, paddleboard, and skateboard sales, rentals, and lessons. From a Discover Scuba course (for noncertified divers) to wreck and reef dives and even shark diving in Jupiter, tours here run the gamut. The dive shop itself is located in the heart of South Beach, but boats depart from marinas in Miami Beach and Key Largo, in the Florida Keys. 850 Washington Ave., South Beach, Miami Beach, Florida, 33139. 305/531–6110; www.southbeachdivers.com.
