Off the Cuff - Florida Keys Edition
My favorite wrist diver, a dive thermometer accompaniment, a reggae banger, twisted po' boy, and a deep dive on diving.
04/17/2026 - Hello from sunny Key Largo, Florida! It’s been a while, I know, I’m not one for making excuses for not writing, I’m as disappointed in myself as anyone else is, so I’ll leave it at this — I owe you guys a couple of posts that I missed from February and March. Count this as my first “make-up” post.
I’m down in one of my favorite places to get away and get off the radar — the Florida Keys. I’m down here for a belated spring break of sorts, doing some scuba diving, soaking up sun, and moonlighting as Conch Republic riff-raff. I’m down here solo, and something about the Keys just has me feeling rather romantic about the place; the sun, the ocean breeze, the palm trees, the devil-may-care attitude. It’s an oddly charming place. Case in point, local Floridians seem to like it just as much as the out-of-state tourists. Over the years, since I obtained my open-water dive certification, this place has become my go-to quick getaway spot for laid-back diving and recharging my internal battery. What better way to spend my downtime than to share some of the vibes with you guys, right?
One On Wrist
Tag Heuer Aquagraph ref. CN211A
I don’t often wear this watch at home. It is a considerable chunk of stainless steel. Both top-heavy and robust. If you’ve ever handled dive gear, it is usually somewhat heavy as well — tanks, lead weights, waterlogged wetsuits. So I guess in many ways it makes sense that it fits the Florida Keys dive bum vibe. It’s not really practical for everyday wear, at least not with my rather small wrists. However, it has been glued to my wrist for the entirety of the trip — and yes, I did bring other watches with me.
In my opinion, the Aquagraph is the best purpose-built dive watch in existence. It has a unique feature set made with diving in mind including a yellow crown right to ensure the crown is not out before splashing, a unidirectional locking bezel than moves and locks by pressing down on sections of the bezel, a chronograph with central seconds and central minutes, and finally chronograph pushers enclosed by rubber caps which make it one of the few dive chronographs that are safe to actuate at depth. SUCK ON THAT SUBMARINER!!! If you’ve got a better entry to the best purpose-built dive watch of all time, I’m all ears.
One in the Shop
Aquastar Dive Thermometer
Thought The Inchcape Collective didn’t have an entry to the Florida Keys Edition of “Off the Cuff?” Well, you thought wrong. Today, I bring you a little curiosity I discovered in one of my favorite vintage shops in Maine. You may know Aquastar as the recently revived watch brand by Rick Marei, bringing back bangers like the Deepstar and the Benthos, but before the brand was revived by Marei and his business partner Marc Seinet, it was known for making professional-grade instruments for diving and other aquatic activities (including watches).
This vintage Aquastar Dive Thermometer was designed to accompany one of Aquastar’s wrist-worn depth gauges or as an accompaniment to a wrist-worn dive watch. When I discovered it in that aforementioned vintage shop, it was paired with a broken Aquastar depth gauge. To my surprise, the shop did not know how rare these thermometers were and was willing to give me a discount on the pair, given that the depth gauge was broken. Little did they know, the true prize was this unassuming little thermometer, which was dwarfed by the oversized depth gauge.
I’ve tested it myself, and to my delight, it still works like a charm. An added benefit is that it is quite the conversation starter, as more than one person on my dive boats has commented, wondering what it is. If you want to nerd out a little more on these lost relics, Scott Sawaya wrote an incredible in-depth article on Wind Vintage about vintage dive gauges that is definitely worth the read — Collector’s Guide: Vintage Dive Gauges.
Three Off the Cuff
“A So The System Work” by Rudolph Francis
With the weather warming up even in the North, I’ve been on a bit of a warm-weather music kick. Thus, I’ve fired up one of my summer playlists, the aptly named “Ocean Breeze FM,” which has been largely dormant since last summer. After arriving at Miami International, I picked up my rental for the long weekend and fired up the playlist on shuffle, and this absolute reggae banger, “A So The System Work” by Rudolph Francis, came on. It was one of those “right song, right time” moments.
It’s basically a song about working hard, not being able to get ahead, and being held down by “the man.” It has been the perfect musical backdrop for a trip that was taken with the idea of getting a much-needed break from the burden and stress of work. It’s one of my few favorite reggae songs by someone whose name doesn’t end in “Marley.” The cherry on top is the final two bars of the song, where Francis sings a good everyday reminder for us all, “Be careful of the system / Or you will be a victim.” Mic drop, exit stage left.
Twisted Shrimp - Islamorada, FL
Finding a good bit of chow on the Keys is about as easy as finding tools in a hardware store. You can pretty much close your eyes and point, and there is another restaurant, bar, or cafe worth trying. Thus, narrowing my list of favorite spots was tough. Some honorable mentions included Sharkey’s Sharkbite Grill as a good happy hour, post-dive beer, or late-night eats spot, or Tacos Jalisco for authentic street tacos and other Mexican fare. Both of these are great, but one spot holds a special place in my heart for one of my favorite dishes — the fried shrimp po’ boy.
Twisted Shrimp, located on Islamorada, serves up my favorite shrimp po’ boy anywhere. They come out hot, picture perfect, and with a side of fries or their charred brussels sprouts. The good eats don’t end with their eponymous signature dish. They also serve up a delicious shrimp and mango ceviche, lobster bites, and seafood rice bowls. It’s a humble little spot that cranks out solid food that hits the spot at any time of the day.
History of Diving Museum - Islamorada, FL
While I’m playing the hits, I’ll share another spot worth visiting while you’re visiting Islamorada. A well-known quantity among the dive community, the History of Diving Museum is an unassuming little building from the outside. You enter into the dual-purpose ticketing office and gift shop, purchase your ticket, then enter through a faux bulkhead into the larger-than-expected museum dedicated to the history of scuba diving and scuba technology.
The museum features an expansive collection of real and replica diving equipment, ranging from submersibles, early dive masks, and probably one of the most extensive collections of commercial diving equipment helmets in the world. With the Keys dive community being one of the biggest in the world and the undisputed North American dive mecca, it is a must-visit for any dive nerd, history buff, or even an errant landlubber.