Islamorada in January...

[Tractor Tom]

Hey Tom, thanks for the good words on Ocean Quest. This is Bill. I have been teaching at Ocean Quest for a few months now. If you know Pat, she thinks it is to cold to dive after the water temp. dips below 80. So I get to teach during the winter.
Will look forward to seeing you in Jan. Let me know if you want to do anything special on the Eagle. Attempt to find the "big" Jewfish, check out the interior or whatever and I'll see what I can do to help. I have made numeous dives on all the Keys wrecks. The Eagle continues to be my favorite.
Hopefully conditions will be better than they have the past few days. Winds are kicking at 25k and above. Thus making for 5 ft waves and poor vis. Water temp is hanging between 72-75. Actually did a 30 min dive in just a bathing suit last week. The rest of the divers thought me a little odd.

Can I drive a tractor??

Hey Bill,

Good to hear from you. I was down Thanksgiving a year ago and did my AOW with Neil McNeil and had a great time. First dive was on the Eagle, and after flunking my 'math quiz' at 108 fsw, we swam back around to the bow to the upline. I peeked over the bow and there was Mr. Jewfish, darn thing looked as big as a Volkwagon Beetle to me at the time. Got on the boat with about 400lbs after hanging around to gawk and then making our stops on the way up! Now I dive with a pony if I'm going deep, just for issues like that. I plan on bringing the pony with me, and will hope the weather cooperates so we can dive a couple wrecks while I'm there. I guess I'm kind of spoiled about wrecks, as we have some GREAT ones here in the Great Lakes.

Will be there for sure on Saturday the 15th, and will probably stop in on Friday afternoon to check in. Will probably get to see you one of those days.

Thanks for the note! Will talk to you soon!

 

[gtxl1200]

Hi Bill,
this is Ted from Michigan I just dove with you guys last week. I was reccomended to you guys by Frankenmuth_Tom. I had a great couple of dives with you guys. Just a side note I think Tom's compass works better then mine. hehehe. Darn Florida currents.
I wish I could make it down there during the time Tom is going to be there but I dont think I will be able to make it. Have fun Tom. Tom Let bill drive the Tractor he is from Texas so he should know how to drive it as well as anybody.

 

[Tractor Tom]

Current forecast for here in Central Michigan is snow developing on Wednesday night with an accumulation by midday Thursday of 4-8". I WAS planning on heading to Florida after work on Thursday, and now may have to hang around the house until Friday when the roads are clear. To drive south in the snow is 'possible' but then I'm at the mercy of all those yahoos who don't understand how to drive in snowy/icy conditions and tend to play bumpercars at speed....

Man! I need to get down where it's warm and the water is clear!!!

 

[MakoSince70]

Mostly sunny and 80 in Islamorada today. JUST PROVIDING MOTIVATION TO DRIVE SOUTH!!
Winds were down to 18k this morning. So a little improvement.

Hey Ted from Michingan, are you the diver that had your own tanks and made your dives with the guy with all the new Scubapro gear.
If so, yea you kept coming up behind the boat but hey you got there. You and Mister Scubapro got the big eye role from Capt. Cindy. Upon surfacing ya just kept jabbering. A sign of a happy dive to me, but, Cindy thought you would never shut up and mount the ladder.
Just joking. We like it when everybody has a great time.

So do I get to drive a tractor !!!!! Hey, maybe you can drive the tractor South through the snow.

 

[murphdivers286]

Hey Tom. I live in PSL. You might sell a tractor or two here. Even the local bars have special parking for tractors. :lol:

I have to check my schedule, but my wife and I would love to dive the Eagle with you. Is that dive going to be on Sat or Sun. Give me a PM.

Hey Bill. It is great to see some dive ops on the board. I hope I get this chance to dive with you. My wife and I dove the Speigel last summer. Awesome wreck, but we would love to dive the Eagle.....

 

[gtxl1200]

Mostly sunny and 80 in Islamorada today. JUST PROVIDING MOTIVATION TO DRIVE SOUTH!!
Winds were down to 18k this morning. So a little improvement.

Hey Ted from Michingan, are you the diver that had your own tanks and made your dives with the guy with all the new Scubapro gear.
If so, yea you kept coming up behind the boat but hey you got there. You and Mister Scubapro got the big eye role from Capt. Cindy. Upon surfacing ya just kept jabbering. A sign of a happy dive to me, but, Cindy thought you would never shut up and mount the ladder.
Just joking. We like it when everybody has a great time.

Yeah that was me with my own tanks and dove with Gary the guy with all new equipment. I had a feeling Cindy was a bit peturbed at us. then when I threw my weight pockets up on the Deck and hit her toes I think was the final straw. I guess communication was the problem their I like to let the other guy get in the boat first and I guess he was waiting on me. It wasnt like we were going to leave we still had people down in the water. Chill Cindy!!!! Tell her I will buy her a drink next time I'm down there. Hopefully it will be soon. roumers have it right now that I might get a week off at end of Janurary due to supply shortages. crossing my fingers and hoping.
See you soon and Tom hopefully you have better weather then I did.

 

[lisa4516]

Current forecast for here in Central Michigan is snow developing on Wednesday night with an accumulation by midday Thursday of 4-8". I WAS planning on heading to Florida after work on Thursday, and now may have to hang around the house until Friday when the roads are clear. To drive south in the snow is 'possible' but then I'm at the mercy of all those yahoos who don't understand how to drive in snowy/icy conditions and tend to play bumpercars at speed....

Man! I need to get down where it's warm and the water is clear!!!

Tom
Have a safe trip and a wonderful time!Being out of Michigan this time of year is great. It is 75 here in Hilton Head!Are you planing to stop by Gilboa and pick up Cyril? I'll bet that he would love the warmer and clearer water. But then, I have heard that gnomes love cold wet places He is probably happy where he is. Dive safe

 

[MakoSince70]

Hey Tom. I live in PSL. You might sell a tractor or two here. Even the local bars have special parking for tractors. :lol:

I have to check my schedule, but my wife and I would love to dive the Eagle with you. Is that dive going to be on Sat or Sun. Give me a PM.

Hey Bill. It is great to see some dive ops on the board. I hope I get this chance to dive with you. My wife and I dove the Speigel last summer. Awesome wreck, but we would love to dive the Eagle.....

The good news is that I am on the Board. The bad news is that I am on the Board because I am not diving. The wind has made conditions a little less than perfect. There has been some improvement. Going out tommorrow afternoon.
If you have never dove the Eagle you are going to love it. The Speigel is cool, but I admit that the Eagle is my favorite. It has been on the bottom long enough to have some spectacular growth. Hurricane Georges split it into. Looks like Paul Bunyan took a giant axe to it.

If you get down and dive with oceanquestdivecenter.com I will be glad to give you a tour.

 

[MakoSince70]

Yeah that was me with my own tanks and dove with Gary the guy with all new equipment. I had a feeling Cindy was a bit peturbed at us. then when I threw my weight pockets up on the Deck and hit her toes I think was the final straw. I guess communication was the problem their I like to let the other guy get in the boat first and I guess he was waiting on me. It wasnt like we were going to leave we still had people down in the water. Chill Cindy!!!! Tell her I will buy her a drink next time I'm down there. Hopefully it will be soon. roumers have it right now that I might get a week off at end of Janurary due to supply shortages. crossing my fingers and hoping.
See you soon and Tom hopefully you have better weather then I did.

Rum and Coke is Cindy's drink. If you get her one from Smuggler's, as soon as the boat docks, you will definitely be here favorite diver of the day.

 

[Tractor Tom]

Well guys,

Lots of chatter here and the chance of meeting some of the local divers! Good news. Drove into work this morning with an inch plus of fresh snow on the ground, and on I-75 which was mostly unplowed. Forecast is for 3-4" of snow tonight and 3-4" more on Thursday during the day.

Bill, if you want to drive a tractor, here is your chance! It'll take me a half hour to move snow in the morning so the wife, kid and I can get out to work in the morning, and another hour or so in the afternoon to really clean things out. I'll have the bosslady take a photo and post it. This is my LEAST favorite time of the year to be sitting on a tractor, at twenty-something degrees and windy.

Current plan is to stay at the farm on Thursday night and leave at 5am on Friday for Florida. That'll put us south of Atlanta by the end of the day and have my dear mother-in-law at her house in Zepherhills Saturday afternoon. After that my time is my own and we'll be at Islamorada by Friday morning to get checked into the motel and get situated to dive. Can't wait to get into the warm weather for a change.

Will post more if there is a change in plan, but expect to be at Ocean Quest before noon on Friday to check on conditions and see about diving.....

Later,