Scuba Diving Lower Florida Keys
Shipwreck List and GPS Coordinates

Diving Lower Florida Keys will take you to some of the deepest recesses scuba diving Florida Keys has to offer.

You'll travel from warm, upper temperatures pushing 85 degrees to temperatures hovering in the 40's, 50's or lower.

You'll be able to go wreck diving on two of the largest artificial reefs in the Florida Keys, the USS Wilkes-Barre, and the Vandenberg Wreck.

You can also pay homage to the unrecovered passengers aboard the unlucky ocean liner, The Valbanera.

Here you have the opportunity of scuba diving Florida Keys Atlantic and Gulf. You can also plan dive trips out to the Dry Tortugas and the Marquesas Keys for even more dive adventures.



You may want to grab a few Florida Keys Florida Keys dive maps for your trip as well. The ability to have more detailed information before a scuba diving trip can be very helpful in terms of properly preparing for your diving adventure.

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Lower Keys and Key West Shipwrecks

The following scuba dive Florida Keys sites are listed by GPS coordinates from northeast to southwest, as opposed to being listed alphabetically. Each highlighted name with take you to a separate page where you can read about that particular wreck site.

Keep in mind that GPS coordinates are not always exact. hurricanes can cause ships to move, and coordinates can be taken from a slightly different location than what would have provided maximum accuracy.

If you treat these Key West diving GPS coordinates as a good guide and remember there could be a slight variation or discrepancy, you won't be disappointed. You'll certainly be within reasonable distance of your target if you're not already on top of it.

Valbanera
24 33.480N 82 28.414W

HMS Looe
24 32.700N 081 24.500W

Adolphus Busch Sr,
24 31.841N 081 27.688W

USS Wilkes-Barre
Bow: 24 29.094N 081 33.202W
Stern: 24 29.046N 081 33.139W

The Aquanaut
24 28.750N 081 42.980W

Joe’s Tug
24 27.850N 81 44.270W

USS Kendrick
24 27.609N 81 36.065W

USS Fred T Berry
24 27.48N 81 33.20W

All Alone Wreck
24 27.330N 81 43.420W

Cayman Salvage Master
24 27.210N 81 45.980W

Vandenberg Wreck
24 27.164N 081 43.594W

USS Curb
24 26.212N 81 46.127W

USS R-12
24 25 210N 82 02.394W

USS S-16
24 25.207N 80 02.393W

GULF SIDE AREA:

USS Sturtevant
24 45.503N 82 01.301W

Alexander’s Wreck
Stern: 24 37.5061N 81 58.923W
Bow: 24 37.366N 081 58.917W

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Scuba Diving Key West is More Variable

Technical scuba diving Florida Keys opportunities are more numerous when diving lower Florida Keys. However, there's still a good selection of spots for scuba diving lower Florida Keys that are suitable for novice to intermediate diving certification.

You'll also encounter a broad spectrum of marine life, often very friendly and possibly looking for a handout. You may even encounter the famed Goliath grouper Elvis if you happen to dive Joe's tug, that is if he hasn't finally gone to grouper heaven.

Just don't forget to bring your scuba diving camera or dive maps for top dive sites like the Vandenberg wreck!

On your Key West diving adventure, you can also plan a dive trip out to the Marquesas Keys. This is where part of the famous Mel Fisher's Atocha treasure team lost their lives.

Mel's son Dirk, Dirk's wife Angel, and a diver perished when their boat, the Northwind sunk while they slept. The amazing treasures from these wrecks now reside in the very worthwhile Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West.

If you're planning on scuba diving Key West Florida, and plan to go to the Dry Tortugas National Park, a ban is in force for fishing Dry Tortugas.

A vote to ban Florida Keys diving in this area has been a hot topic of conversation for years, but has never fully evolved. Currently diving within the park has a 2 hour maximum limit but diving Dry Tortugas outside of the Ecological Reserve is alive and well.

Scuba diving Lower Florida Keys you'll experience some of the best, and perhaps even most difficult dives you've been on. You'll encounter strong currents, sometimes difficult to find dive sites, and even longer boat rides than when on a typical dive in the Upper Keys and Middle Keys.

However, once you make your way down and are diving in the wreck, the thrill of facing these challenges and knowing that very few have gone before you, makes scuba diving lower Florida Keys even more remarkable and memorable.