Coral Reef Diving

Me and my brother had an honor to scuba dive the only living Coral Barrier Reef in the United States. It is the Third Largest Living Organism in the World, Stretching more then 130 Miles. Average Water Temperature is 80 degrees, visibility averages 30-50 feet, with approximately 330 good diving days a year. Few marine environments in the United States compare to the Florida Keys in natural beauty and resource diversity. An island chain on the southern tip of the Florida peninsula, the Keys are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico to the north. They stretch 202 miles (356 km) to the south and west, ending 90 miles north of Cuba. Diving has been a big part of life in Key Largo for many years. The John Pennekamp Coral Reef Park was the first underwater state park in the U.S., founded in 1960. In 1965, the famous "Christ of the Abyss" statue was placed at The Dry Rocks dive site here. The reef dives have excellent visibility and an abundance of interesting corals and reef fish.
The shallow (20-50 feet) nature of these dives makes for warm water and good light for photography. Molasses Reef is one of the most popular dive destinations in the world - which means the diving is great. Another popular reef diving site is Dry Rocks where lies the famous statue "Christ of Abyss". This statue stands in 25 feet of water. It is a copy of another statue located in Mediterranean Sea near Genoa, Italy. The original statue was cast by artist Guido Galleti. In 1961 Italian diving group donated it to Uderwater Society fo America. Today, Christ of the Abyss is one of the most famous and popular underwater sites in the only underwater park in the world. There are many other dive sites we have been diving on and each of them has something unique to offer whether specific types of corals or variety of fish. We have already visited these other dive sites: Minnow Caves, City of Washington, North & South Ledges, Benwood Wreck, French Reef, Grecian Rocks, Carysfort Reef...