Trading the North Pole for a tropical atoll, Old St. Nick took his annual holiday plunge in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary on the weekend, where 35-degree weather and streams of sunshine offered stark contrast to the ice and snow in Santa’s more familiar habitat.
Played by Florida Key’s dive shop operator Spencer Slate, Santa brought along his trusted underwater elves and a festively dressed Mermaid to mingle with some very curious marine life at Pleasure Reef off Key Largo.
So, who was naughty and who was nice? Apparently word spreads fast underwater when Santa’s checking his list. And Florida Keys’ underwater occupants seemed more than eager to tell Santa their highs and lows as schools of fish and other marine life swam alongside the festive divers throughout their underwater excursion.
Among the residents getting into the holiday spirit were a giant green moray eel that appeared to be whispering its very detailed Christmas list to Santa. A curious shark, and a Goliath grouper named ‘Peanut,’ who was large enough to pull Santa’s sleigh if his reindeer ever went on strike.
Slate, who owns Captain Slate’s Scuba Adventures, has been bringing holiday cheer to the underwater residents of the Florida Keys reef for 35 years, offering dive charter customers the chance to capture unique underwater holiday photos beneath the waves.
His underwater holiday tradition has become as much a part of the Florida Keys as the sanctuary itself, which also marks its 35th anniversary this year protecting North America’s only living coral barrier reef and the waters surrounding the island chain.
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