Loggerheads, Goliaths and Lionfish (oh my)!

Castor Wreck and Reef with South Florida Diving HQ in Boynton

It was a beautiful day for diving out of Boynton, even though Mother Nature couldn't make up her mind what the water temperature should be. It's that time of year when the surface water was warmed by recent 90+ degree temperatures, while an upwelling brought in colder Gulf Stream waters near the surface. Up to 40 feet it was a balmy 83 degrees, then the characteristic shimmer dared divers to venture deeper into the 76 degree water lurking beneath the warm layer. But what she did get absolutely right was the flat calm seas that made diving into Lake Atlantic a dream. 

Dive 1: Castor Wreck Our group of eight divers started on the Castor wreck, a favorite of ours during the Goliath grouper aggregation time in the fall. And there are some resident Goliaths that hang around this wreck year round. We were treated to sightings of about six goliaths hanging around the 100 ft. mark. There were a lot of fish on this wreck including Crevalle jacks darting about feeding on smaller fish. 

Dive 2: Cronin's The reefs of Boynton Beach never disappoint with high-relief ledges, huge clouds of fish and lots of eels, turtles and sharks. We saw seven turtles between two groups of divers and a nurse shark. Lobsters were numerous, as were gorgeous angel fish, puffer fish and a beautiful school of Atlantic spade fish. 

Capt. Alex speared about a dozen lionfish which he brought back to the dock and cleaned. Because he was headed out, he generously gave us all the filets which we took to Two Georges on the dock. We got the "You Hook 'em We Cook 'em" special and our catch yielded six lion fish tacos which were absolutely delicious. A great way to end a great day of diving!

--Active Divers President and Safety Officer Rachel Davis

Loggerheads resting for nesting. Photo by Rodolfo Lopez. 

Boynton divers (from left) Aaron Brooks, Bruce Garber, Roger Bach, Brian McDermott, John Lutkehaus, Rudy Lopez, Rachel Davis, John Davis.