Lower Keys Dive Pictures
Florida Keys Dive Sites
Looe Key Reef is one of the most
popular dive and snorkel destinations
in the Middle and Lower Keys. The
reef is 10 miles Southwest of Bahia
Honda Channel and has 54 buoys.
The depth ranges from 5 to 70 feet
making this site excellent for beginner
to advanced divers and for snorkelers.
It is said that the HMS Looe recaptured
a British ship, Betty, that was taken by
privateers. After the men from the
Looe had manned Betty, her
commander, Captain Ashby Utting,
ordered her to be burned because he
wanted to ignite all of the gunpowder
aboard to completely destroy her so
that the Spanish could not come back
later and savage anything. There is
not much of the Looe visible now on
the reef.
Looe Key was damaged quite a bit
from the recent hurricanes in 2004 and
2005 but still is a beautiful dive site.
Don't be surprised to find reef sharks
around this site. They have been
known to swim together and in circles.
A lot of the soft coral was damaged but
the hard coral is healthy and there are
always a lot of tropical fish around the
reef.
The formation is mostly spur and
groove with the outer, deeper areas
mostly sandy bottoms where you'll
always find lots of conchs making their
trails along the sand.
Some schools of fish have been feed
by boaters and divers in the area, so
you'll probably have a few dozen fish
under and around your boat after tieing
to the buoy as well as giant barracuda
hovering nearby.
Looe Key is in an SPA area. No fishing
or lobstering allowed.
popular dive and snorkel destinations
in the Middle and Lower Keys. The
reef is 10 miles Southwest of Bahia
Honda Channel and has 54 buoys.
The depth ranges from 5 to 70 feet
making this site excellent for beginner
to advanced divers and for snorkelers.
It is said that the HMS Looe recaptured
a British ship, Betty, that was taken by
privateers. After the men from the
Looe had manned Betty, her
commander, Captain Ashby Utting,
ordered her to be burned because he
wanted to ignite all of the gunpowder
aboard to completely destroy her so
that the Spanish could not come back
later and savage anything. There is
not much of the Looe visible now on
the reef.
Looe Key was damaged quite a bit
from the recent hurricanes in 2004 and
2005 but still is a beautiful dive site.
Don't be surprised to find reef sharks
around this site. They have been
known to swim together and in circles.
A lot of the soft coral was damaged but
the hard coral is healthy and there are
always a lot of tropical fish around the
reef.
The formation is mostly spur and
groove with the outer, deeper areas
mostly sandy bottoms where you'll
always find lots of conchs making their
trails along the sand.
Some schools of fish have been feed
by boaters and divers in the area, so
you'll probably have a few dozen fish
under and around your boat after tieing
to the buoy as well as giant barracuda
hovering nearby.
Looe Key is in an SPA area. No fishing
or lobstering allowed.
Looe Key
Photos by Gail Culver
No reproduction allowed without permission.
No reproduction allowed without permission.
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