Finally made a trip down to the Florida Caves

[SuPrBuGmAn]

Well considering I am not cavern diver, I was not willing to go any deeper into the cavern entrance. I made the right decision for my training level.

I'm glad you didn't go in too far to get yourself into any trouble, but prudence would have kept you out of the overhead all together. While you did a good thing by not pressing on, you didn't get to take full advantage of what the cavern has to offer and the conclusion of your report on Jackson Blue is inaccurate.

Glad you had some good dives though.

What are the limits on Cavern? 200 feet combined depth and penetration? (Its been a while) That makes the end of the cavern zone at JB somewhere around the start of the Goldline. I think a lot of divers call the entire first room before the chimney a "cavern" but in reality it is a cave.

200' for TDI standards, less for other agencies. The goldline starts at 100'p, and the 200' marker is around the big white rock with the large airpocket. Thats also just around where you start to lose ambient light. There's enough cavern there that you can take advantage of the full penetration limits of the certification(assuming you have it in the first place).

 

[Texas Torpedo]

I visited Vortex and Ginnie in the last few weeks. The viz at Ginnie was better than Vortex, but I enjoyed Vortex much more since I didn't do any penetrations. I hope to get cavern and cave training before the end of the year so I can enter next time I visit.

I have some videos and pictures of Vortex I will upload shortly.

David

 

[Crazyduck]

Debra- Great pictures.

The cave at Marianna; Jackson Blue is unique because the entrance is actually a breakdown room. As you swim in and descend slightly you can see the boulders below you and gaps on the left and right side of the room were the ceiling fell in.
This is one of the biggest cavern zones that I have dove and perhaps one of my favorites. Sitting at the back of the cavern zone on the ceiling you can see the filtered light through the water that gives it an erie blue hue. Not to mention the sound of your air bubbles running across the ceiling; sounding like a freight train.
I am guessing that it is about the size and similar shape of a football field.

Cozumel was alot shallower and warmer....
I think that dive was 30ft and temp of 75 degrees; plus we had Haloclines- which were Wild.... :shocked2:

Florida tends to be deeper, colder, harder to silt in high flow areas, you ride out and plenty of picnic benches.

Mexico tends to be shallower, warmer, easier to silt out, low flow not no flow and you are swimming (still swimming) out.
Both have the mosquito as the state bird.

Glad to hear from cave divers on the board.
Later, Andrew

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

There are LOTS of low/no flow caves in Florida if thats what you're after

 

[paul19may]

What are the limits on Cavern? 200 feet combined depth and penetration? (Its been a while) That makes the end of the cavern zone at JB somewhere around the start of the Goldline. I think a lot of divers call the entire first room before the chimney a "cavern" but in reality it is a cave.

For NSS CDS, NACD, CMAS Zone 1: Cavern training is limited to the extent of the natural light. (Unless, of course, standards have recently changed.) PADI/ DSAT uses either NSS CDS or NACD. I am not familiar with other agencies training limitations.

CMAS actually defines a cavern as that area which is lit naturally (called Zone 1), I am not familiar with other agencies formally defining the cavern as that same area (they might), but as training is limited to that area (see above), it would seem that it is the de facto definition and leaves plenty of scope to accommodate for the differing geologic structures.

I reserve the right to be corrected.

 

[Kevin Carlisle]

There is a 200ft max penetration limit with NACD along with being able to see the daylight zone.

 

[Crazyduck]

Awesome pictures!

There are LOTS of low/no flow caves in Florida if thats what you're after

 

[paul19may]

There is a 200ft max penetration limit with NACD along with being able to see the daylight zone.

Thanks for that plus there are other applicable limits too - I cast the definition more in the general than the specific to provide a broad reference for understanding whilst retaining the overall intergrity of the concept; there is more to defining a cavern.

 

[Debraw]

In Jackson Blue I went back into the Cavern as far as the sign, and the gold line, I touched it. I don't know maybe it's just me and my lack of interest in the cavern/cave etc. I just kept getting the feeling that I wasn't really getting the full experience. From my opinion as an inexperienced, non-cave diver. I was curious but not enough to push my limits. I enjoyed sitting on the shelf and waiting for the divers to come out, eerie, dark and then the blue light emerged from the shadows. I feel my words were misconstrued in my description of my experience that is purely because I do not know much of anything about cave or cavern diving. I was with people that know about it. I have experience in deep dark lakes where the light gets swallowed up by the darkness, under the ice in an Iowa lake, and surely i have had enough dives where i can not go immediately up to the surface at any given point in time because of my depth, overhead conditions, or lack of light. I am not a green diver and I would not go any further than I felt comfortable with so I did not feel like I was in danger. I am not a scuba cowboy ( girl)! Sorry if I hurt anyone by my report. It was simple and quick and I now realiuze I did not do JB justice and I am glad you all commented on my post.

 

[Kevin Carlisle]

Very cool. I am glad to said that.. JB is a highly traveled cave by many people far away due to the vastness of that system. If I had not been there and read your report I would not have planned a trip there. If overhead is your thing, it is a must do dive. If you saw the gold line, it only gets better from there.