Blue Hole questions

[DandyDon]

I could use a couple of anchors because of the strong current and swell.

Nah, not if you check the tides and go on slack. :silly:

 

[amascuba]

Sshhhh.. What James doesn't know "may" not hurt him...

I don't like the sound of that!

 

[Jasonmh]

I could use a couple of anchors because of the strong current and swell.

Or, when you get tired and need to rest from swimming the "entire" lenght of the hole

 

[RonFrank]

Or, when you get tired and need to rest from swimming the "entire" lenght of the hole

I've seen a number of divers there that may need anchors!

Unfortunately, what they need more is to learn to dive!

 

[texspeleo]

Some interesting comments here. I've heard a lot of things. This trip I'll make a point of talking to Stella about the history, and see what she has to say.

Some things I've heard over the years.

* There is a Cavern under the bottom of BH, and if the bottom caves in, it will become over 300feet deep.

* The cavern systems run into Carlsbad caverns.

* The Cavern systems run all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.

I don't know if these are rumors, fact, or what.

A few things I've picked up about Blue Hole from some friends in the cave diving community and a little cave science if you're interested....

--It does indeed have a cave system extending from the gate to a depth of greater than 300ft. It has been closed since the mid '70s due to several fatalities. Limestone caves generally don't collapse until a cave has come out of solution (water goes elsewhere due to climactic change, tectonic movement, or erosion redirecting the path of moving water) and the cave becomes dry. This is a processes which is currently thought to take thousands of years.

--Carlsbad is fairly well surveyed and is I feel it is probably safe to say that the two are not connected. Caves generally are not linear things, and while the distance from Santa Rosa to Carlsbad is only about 200 miles, this would be an incredible distance for a cave system to cover. The longest cave system in the world is Mammoth Cave, KY with 350+ miles of surveyed passage but it has no linear spans that come anywhere near that distance. The entire cave system at Mammoth is contained in an area roughly 10 miles long by 8.5 miles wide. Santa Rosa and Carlsbad are close enough together that it is plausible that they are over the same aquifer, but I don't have any info immediately on-hand to research that. Aquifer's can be thought of as giant stone sponges (the household cleaning variety)--lots of porous stone, but very little that would be passable by something our size. I'm afraid that the Gulf of Mexico is right out of the realm of possibility.

It's still a cool dive.

Cheers----Chris