Main Menu
Join Undercurrent on Facebook

The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975 | |
For Divers since 1975
The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975
"Best of the Web: scuba tips no other
source dares to publish" -- Forbes
X
 

Dive Review of Spree Expeditions, M/V Spree in
The Continental USA/Florida Keys

Spree Expeditions, M/V Spree: "Fantastic Keys wreck trek on the Spree", Aug, 2015,

by Craig A Wood, PA, US (Top Contributor Top Contributor 50 reports with 48 Helpful votes). Report 8319 has 1 Helpful vote.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 5 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity 5 stars
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 5 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments I have wanted to do the Florida Keys wreck trek for a long time and finally got my opportunity on a trip aboard the M/V Spree, organized by Pete and Elena from ScubaBoard. The experience on the Spree exceeded my expectations.
The Spree is a pleasure to live and dive from. The Spree is a 100 foot aluminum crew boat, refitted for diving. The dive deck is extremely well laid out. It has tank racks and under seat storage for each diver. Tanks are filled in place, 32% nitrox was included in the trip, and was within tenths of a percent of target the entire time. Divers analyzed their gas and tank pressure prior to each dive and recorded it in a logbook. There was a large camera table, dedicated camera rinse tanks, gear rinse tanks, and 2 hot water showers on the deck. There is a large swim platform and two very sturdy ladders. The main salon includes the galley, the dining room, and a large charging station. The accommodations are not luxurious but are very comfortable. Bunks are available in 4 bed units as well as in an open area. My son and I had a lower and upper bunk in one of the units and found it very pleasant and cozy. We had no trouble sleeping after the 4 dives per day. There is a large and comfortable sun deck on the upper level. There are 4 restrooms including 2 off the salon, 1 off the dive deck with a shower, and 1 off the lower level, also with a shower. There was unlimited hot water. The boat is designed to carry up to 24 passengers and up to 8 crew. We were very lucky to have only 10 divers and 6 crew, a real luxury. The entire staff, Captain Frank, 2nd Captain Tim, DMs Mel and Jess, and galley staff, Anna and Stephanie were absolutely excellent. The food was uniformly excellent and beer and wine were included after diving for the day was done.
We boarded the boat in Key West on Sunday night, got a detailed briefing, and were then free to move into our room for a good night sleep while cruising up to Key Largo. At each site, we were moored to a ball and had a current line from the descent line to the stern of the boat. The current line was not only a good idea, but was really needed on many of the dives. Mel and Jess ran a tight dive deck, everything was always ready for a smooth dive. The trip was a rec/tec trip, 4 of us did rec dives and the others did light tec or a combination of tec and rec. There were 2 dive windows per day of 4 hours duration, generally 8-12 and 2-6. In our 4 days, we did 4 dives on the Spiegel Grove, 2 dives on the Duane, the one buoy at the Bibb was occupied so did 2 dives at the Eagle, 2 dives at the Thunderbolt, 2 dives on the Adolphus Busch, and 3 dives on the Vandenberg. The diving was fantastic though the visibility in the northern keys was certainly better than in the South. The boat had 4 weighted down lines at the stern, one with an auxiliary reg, these were frequently the best places for the safety stop considering the current. I had dived the Spiegel Grove and Duane before, I am really looking forward to a return to the Vandenberg, as 3 dives was entirely inadequate to explore this huge wreck. The opportunity to dive the Eagle, Thunderbolt, and Adolphus Busch was most appreciated.
After this tremendous experience, I’m looking forward to my next trip on the Spree. The Dry Tortugas trip is very attractive. Captain Frank is working hard to organize a trip to Cuba, that, I would do, in a heartbeat.
Websites Spree Expeditions, M/V Spree   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience Over 1000 dives
Where else diving Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, Bonaire, Curacao, Turks and Caicos, Cozumel, Costa Rica, Panama, Maui, Oahu, San Diego, Cape Ann, Key Largo, Boynton Beach, Jupiter...
Closest Airport Key West Getting There We flew to Palm Beach International and drove to Key West

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, dry Seas calm, currents
Water Temp 84-87°F / 29-31°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 20-80 Ft/ 6-24 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Rec divers with buddy or solo with cert and equipment. No deco
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks 1 or 2 Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales None
Corals N/A Tropical Fish 3 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 3 stars
Large Pelagics N/A

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter N/A Boat Facilities N/A
Overall rating for UWP's N/A Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments [None]
Was this report helpful to you?
Report currently has 1 Helpful vote
Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here
 

Subscribe Now
Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 676 dive reviews of The Continental USA and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

 

Want to assemble your own collection of The Continental USA reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

Undercurrent Home


Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email.
And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent

Free Undercurrent Issue
Get a free
monthly email and
a sample issue!


Find in  

| Home | Online Members Area | My Account | Login | Join |
| Travel Index | Dive Resort & Liveaboard Reviews | Featured Reports | Recent Issues | Back Issues |
| Dive Gear Index | Health/Safety Index | Environment & Misc. Index | Seasonal Planner | Blogs | Free Articles | Book Picks | News |
| Special Offers | RSS | FAQ | About Us | Contact Us | Links |

Copyright © 1996-2024 Undercurrent (www.undercurrent.org)
3020 Bridgeway, Ste 102, Sausalito, Ca 94965
All rights reserved.

Page computed and displayed in 0.11 seconds