Five things we learned from talking to staffers at Florida Sea Base

A handful of Florida Sea Base staffers (talk about having cool jobs!) recently sat down with the hosts of Scout Life magazine’s #Trekat2 live Facebook show to discuss all the things you can do at the Summit.

You can watch the entire interview here. Below are five things we learned from our conversation.

1. The coral reef restoration project sounds awesome … and important!

Coral reefs in the Florida Keys have experienced a 90% decline in the last few decades due to a variety of causes. As part of the Sea Base’s Marine STEM Adventure, Scouts help out at a land-based coral nursery, where they propagate, care for and plant coral on the reef.

“It’s so important because our entire ecosystem somewhat revolves around our Florida Keys reefs,” says Sea Base staffer Alex Clardy. “It gives the fish a place to swam. And it gives the world more oxygen.”

In addition to coral restoration, Marine STEM Adventure participants will use underwater robots, snorkel the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and visit a marine laboratory.

2. It’s a great place to try BSA Family Adventure Camp.

For decades, Sea Base has been a perfect location for Scouts to spend the night on a boat or on a beach. Now, it’s a great location for the entire family to spend the night in an air-conditioned luxury tent with a view of the ocean. Each tent contains comfortable beds and high-quality furniture — and is a short walk away from our shower house and indoor restroom facilities.

Family Adventure Camp is working closely with Bahia Honda State Park to provide water activities to FAC participants, including snorkeling, swimming, kayaking, hiking, sailing and fishing.

3. Islamorada is the sport-fishing capital of the world!

The original Florida National High Adventure Sea Base location, on Lower Matecumbe Key in Islamorada, Fla., began as a fishing camp after the Overseas Highway opened in 1938. For good reason: Islamorada’s unique location, lying between Florida Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, provides an unrivaled diversity of fishing opportunities, according to one Florida Keys tourist organization.

Several Sea Base adventures take advantage of the opportunity, including the Florida Fishing Adventure, which gives participants the opportunity to fish for tuna, mahi-mahi, snapper, grouper and sharks.

4. Sea Base offers professional courses for adults and educational opportunities for Scouts.

Looking for the first step in working with scuba as a career? Your adventure into the professional levels of recreational scuba diving begins with the PADI Divemaster program at Sea Base. When you’re ready for the next step, there’s a PADI Instructor Development Course.

Scouts can participate in half-day, single day, overnight, weekend or weeklong educational adventures including topics such as coral education, marine ecosystems, and fish and shark tagging.

5. Registration is open for 2022 right now.

Though there are a few spots open for 2021, it’s not too early to be thinking about 2022. Registration is offered on a first-come, first-served basis. There is no lottery. When you sign up, you’re in!

Outside of the family camping program, each participant must be currently registered in one of the following programs: Exploring, Scouts BSA, Sea Scouts or Venturing. Participants must be 13 years of age prior to their arrival at Sea Base.