So I had been having multiple conversations back and forth with the Rainbow Reef staff about whether or not they could rent me rebreather cylinders and a bailout bottle. I even tried using words like “small tanks” and “pony bottles” to no avail. Unfortunately I couldn’t get anywhere with them. It was a little disappointing since my other interactions with the staff and experience on the boat was fine so I don’t want to paint them in a bad light but just give a little constructive criticism.
The email response that I got from them in December said it would be no issue. I also reached out to one of their course directors via e-mail/scubaboard who told me it also shouldn’t be a problem but unfortunately he was not there this week. I don’t want to mention names as I don’t want to get anyone in trouble but the first person I had spoken to said they would call me back and I never got a return phone call. The 2nd person I spoke to said they don’t ever rent rebreather cylinders and bailout bottles unless you’re taking a class with them. I had emailed the original person I spoke to again and he told me to reach out to another course director who also wasn’t in the office.
Finally I spoke to a 3rd person who told me they don’t do that and really didn’t know anyone that did? Odd…You’re in the Florida Keys, the diving capital of the United States and you can’t name a single shop that would be able to rent me rebreather bottles? Thankfully as I stated in my previous post, Horizon Divers was gratuitous enough to let me rent their bottles for another day.
I just want to state for the record that if you’re advertising or trying to bill yourself as a rebreather friendly dive operator then everyone in your shop should be on the same page or not if you rent rebreather cylinders and bailout bottles. I just don’t like getting inconsistent answers. You’re advertising technical dive trips on your website (according to the person on the phone they don’t really do those kinds of dives but are trying to..) and rebreather try-dives. I walked by a Poseidon rebreather on display in your dive shop with the exact cylinders I need which means you clearly do actually have them in your shop but can’t rent me them?
In any case, the dives were fine. We were scheduled on the Monday morning charter aboard the Tropical Adventure to go the USCGC Duane and Molasses Reef. The winds had picked up considerably from yesterday and they actually called us the night before warning us that seas would be rough and gave us the option of canceling. When we checked-in at the dive boat they also warned us again. It was certainly nice that they give you the option to cancel or re-schedule your dives.
The ride out of the Duane was bumpy but went by quickly, we hooked into the stern mooring. Absolutely no surface current just lots of surge and big rollers. The boat crew gave a very thorough briefing and told us the pool was open. The guided DM group splashed in first while me and my girlfriend jumped in after. I had been advised that I was limited to recreational NDLs which was no problem really. My girlfriend was on an AL80 with nitrox so it was a shorter dive.
Compared to yesterday’s USCGC Duane dive the conditions on the wreck were much better. Absolutely no current and slightly better visibility. We were able to do a complete circuit of the wreck starting at the stern and making our way up to the portside to the bow and then back to stern. Schools of horse-eye jacks and barracuda were all over the wreck. The same nurse shark and the two lionfish from yesterday were still on the wreck in t
he same place.
We saw that the guided DM group was starting their ascent up the mooring so we figured it was time to head up at about 26 minutes. Total dive time was 39 minutes. Max depth: 122ft Water temp was 72f.
The 2nd dive site we dove was Molasses Reef. Not too much to report really. It was very surgy and the visibility was relatively poor due to everything being churned up from the waves/surge. Max depth was 35ft with a total runtime of 60 minutes. The water temperature was 72-73f degrees. I spotted a lone reef shark and all the usual suspects you would expect to see diving in Florida/Caribbean. There was some nice elkhorn coral where the boat was moored that I got some decent pictures of. Other than that, it was a fairly uneventful dive. I suspect conditions would have been better without all the wave action on the surface.
Overall the boat crew on the Tropical Adventure ran a great trip. Good briefings and very safety cautious crew and captain. The staff in the shop were also very friendly. They even helped us bring gear from our car down to the boat. Just don’t expect to get much in the way of rebreather support with Rainbow Reef Dive Center. If you’re just using them for a recreational trip then everything should be fine. Perhaps they will build out their technical diving trips / support better in the future.
Unfortunately the wind has increased steadily here so it looks like I am done diving for the week. My Tuesday AM and PM charters were canceled and the winds look even worse on Wednesday. Back to Boston on Thursday.
