Vero Beach

A large reef system is located just off the beach of the Florida East coast starting in the north at Vero Beach and running south until just north of Miami at around Dania Beach. At the northern end of this reef system, Vero Beach, access to the dive sites is quite easy as there are several parks and small parking lots off of Ocean Drive. A couple of the access points put a diver close to shore accessible wrecks. One of them is known as the boiler wreck, the top of which is still slightly visible during low tide. Parking is available at the lot of the Ocean Drive and SR60 intersection. To get to Ocean Drive head east from A1A while in Vero Beach. In diving Vero Beach, the reef system consists of several smaller reefs either running parallel to shore or at a slight angle from shore. Patches of sand exist between the reef lines and can be used as navigation aids. Distance to the reef from shore varies from access point to access point but is generally within a couple hundred yards. Depth of the reefs varies from 10 to 15 feet or so. The reefs consist of ledges and overhangs several feet high. Each reef varies slightly in underwater topography as you move from the inner reefs to the outer reefs with the most variation taking place at the outer, ocean facing reef. The ocean facing reef has the most variation of structure as well as the most fish (both number and type). The down side is that the outer reef can be a couple hundred yards farther out from the inner most reef which can make for quite a surface swim. The inner reefs does have fish life but not nearly as much. The coral coverage on the reef is sparse but it exists. Mostly the reefs are covered in algae and other seaweed. Some other pointers are when diving on the reefs make sure to keep an eye upwards and out since fish that hang out higher up in the water column can be seen such as jacks and schools of mackerel. Also in some areas there are an abundance of sea urchins. Keep the effects of surge in mind when diving these areas and stay farther off from the reef structure.

Vero Beach & Ft Pierce Scuba diving is GREAT! Visibility can be 50-100 on GOOD DAYS (depending on where you are, the tides, water temp and time of year... best in summer! We love Vero and Ft Pierce Diving "The Treasure Coast" You NEVER know what you will see, even just offshore a few feet there are many tropicals such as angel fish and parrot fish (not too many parrots unless you are near a coral reef) wormrock reefs just offshore are different and draw a variety of fish and lobsters… BIG lobsters! Grouper, snapper, sea turtles, manta rays and sharks. You should never touch the coral/wormrock or anything underwater… don't want to disturb any sea critters' homes! Even coral reefs are alive and you need to be careful, not just to stop yourself from getting hurt, but from doing damage that takes YEARS and YEARS to replace. Learn to control your buoyancy in the shallow water close to shore as the surge can be strong and knock you around!

My very first dive was done at Vero. I was given a tour of the reefs by a 16 year veteran to those reefs. Conditions can be perfect with great (25'plus) vis, no surge, little current, lots of plants and animals...just watch for the urchins. Because of the urchins, gloves are a necessity and wet suit is better than bathing suit. Conditions are best here in the spring and early summer. If seas are bad, be prepared for a rough dive. Surge can get bad and because of the shallowness of some areas coupled with hundreds of urchins, it is best to not try it in bad seas. If seas are calm, if wind is calm, this is a great dive for the inexperienced with an experienced buddy. If there is beach restoration in the area, vis will be horrible. Be watchful for the treasure hunter boats because they will stir up the bottom and turn a great vis day into a dark and 0 vis day in a matter of seconds. See Verobeachreefs.com for aerial photos of reef areas and photos of the wildlife.