The History of Diving Museum and the National Association of Underwater Instructors will hold Vintage Dive Weekend on Saturday and Sunday, March 8-9 at Jules Undersea Lodge in Key Largo.
If you’ve ever dreamed of diving like Lloyd Bridges and Zale Perry in “Sea Hunt” or like Jacques Cousteau and his team, now is the chance. Participants can see what diving in the past era was like, gearing up in a classic double-hose regulator and taking a tour of the lagoon at Jules Undersea Lodge.
In addition to diving in vintage scuba gear, attendees will get a look at what it takes to suit up a diver in a classic World War II-era U.S. Navy Mark V helmet, as a team from Trident Surface Supplied Diving preps the diver who will make a descent into the lagoon.
Brass Hat divers will use an open-bottom “Divinhood” made by the Miller-Dunn Company, which was located in Miami off the Miami River. These unique helmets, made from the mid-1910s to the 1930s, were used by the military for ship husbandry and shallow-water work. Commercial and treasure divers used the helmets for salvage operations and they became a groundbreaking tool for early marine biologists and underwater photographers. The “Divinhood” made possible some of the first recreational diving in the Florida Keys.
These live demonstrations with hardhat gear will take place at noon on Saturday and Sunday. The vintage scuba dives will take place every hour on the hour both days from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the exception of noon.
Divers, non-divers and land-lovers alike may watch as well as partake in photo opportunities and art activities while learning about diving history and conservation with staff from the museum. Those interested in experiencing vintage diving can reserve a dive at divingmuseum.org.
