Diving The Spiegel Grove, 2008 (part #2)

Frank, Tom, Chad, Glenn, Klink & Hooper diving the Spiegel Grove. Key largo, 2008.

Click on video below.

Check out Diving The Spiegel Grove, 2008 (part #1), below.

Diving The Spiegel Grove, 2008 (part 1)

At the end of October some fellow divers and myself headed down to Key Largo, Fl. to dive The USS Spiegel Grove.

The Spiegel Grove is a United States Navy Ship. It’s called a Landing Ship Dock (LSD 32),. She was commissioned in June of 1956 and she was decommissioned October, 1998 after serving in amphibious exercises along the eastern seaboard and in the Caribbean with several goodwill trips to Africa. She was moved to Florida in 2002 and was sunk to create an artificial reef in Key Largo.

The ship is 510 feet in length, 84 feet wide. When the ship was sunk it flipped upside down. But then it was flipped onto her side by putting giant balloons into it and raising it. When it was on it’s side I dove to the bottom depth of about 135 ft at the stern and swam up the other side. The depth at the highest point of the ship is about 65 ft. Due to the waves, surge and currents from Hurricane Dennis in 2005, the Spiegel Grove shifted and now sits upright demonstrating the incredible power of the ocean.

Diving the Grove is an awesome experience and adventure. When dropping down on the rope to the ship you start to see the silhouette at about 25 feet. It’s so big that you can’t see the whole ship and it feels like you are seeing the Titanic. It’s an excellent wreck with a lot of history. There are many places to penetrate the wreck. But do not go inside unless you have the experience to do so. I’ve been diving this wreck since 2003. I have about 20 dives on it and know my way around a bit. Enjoy the pictures below. They will give you an idea of what the wreck is like but check back real soon. I will be posting a video of the dive that will be outstanding and I think you will really enjoy it!

Chad, Frank & Tom