Just wanted to share...

[SeaJay]

Place: Devil's Den and Blue Grotto, two freshwater springs in North Florida. Both have a sort of "cavern structure" to them that allows OW divers to sorta feel what it's like in a cave, without requiring the skills and certifications to be in a cave. (Since you aren't really in an overhead environment.)

Camera: Cheap, disposable, 17ft underwater camera, which was completely useless below 5 or 10 feet. Sorry, guys... I'll have to buy real gear later on... Too much diving to do now!

Check out this way cool, dramatic shot, taken inside Devil's Den. Sorry it's not better quality-wise, but I saw the shot and took it at the surface as the sun was beaming down from the "hole" in the ceiling.

By the way, that blonde on the dock is RavenC. The diver behind her is unknown; not with our group. Nice guy, though...

http://www.boomspeed.com/seajay/026_25a.jpg

And here's a shot of me and RavenC at Blue Grotto... Very cool dive!

http://www.boomspeed.com/seajay/006_4A1.jpg

And of course, a little local wildlife from Blue Grotto. He was extremely curious, and very friendly, although we all knew not to trust a snapper...

http://www.boomspeed.com/seajay/008_6A1.jpg

Thanks for letting me share.

 

[art.chick]

You see, turtles are not untrustworthy, they are just highly sceptical. Thanks for showing us what u saw. That sounds like a dream come true for those of us who are dying to learn cave diving but are just a couple grand short right now. We have an MX10 & an MX5; the MX5 is pretty inexpensive & simple as far as underwater cameras go. May be a good bug to put in Santa's ear.

 

[SeaJay]

It was a dream come true!

Here's links for anyone interested:

Blue Grotto: http://www.sfdj.com/springs_issue/bgrotto.htm and http://www.wadespage.com/D800DS02RF03.shtml

Devil's Den: http://www.sfdj.com/springs_issue/devil.htm and http://www.devilsden.com/

Highly recommended, and fun... Great places, hands down. Both were accessible and inexpensive, and had good dive facilities.

Not for the experienced caver, but a great way to "get wet" and experience what it might be like to cave dive. All you need is an OW certification or an instructor, and you're in.

 

[Rick Murchison]

Lovely sites, looks like you had a grand time.
Now, don't get offended - your turtle isn't a snapper - it's almost certainly a Florida Softshell (Apalone ferox) - note the smooth shell and the pointy nose...
Rick

 

[landlocked]

Thanks for sharing. Except for the neoprene, the place looks a lot like the Homestead Crater in Utah.

 

[The Chairman]

is a softshell, or what we commonly a slider. HOWEVER... ALL turtles have a very sharp beak and many can sever a finger most easily. That is, all of them SNAP!!!

 

[Dee]

It's been a few years since I was at Blue Grotto and Devil's Den. That trip was shared by some very dear friends and the reminder is nice.

That first picture is way cool!

 

[SeaJay]

Thanks for the compliment on that last pic... Now if I'd just had a quality camera to work with, I could have captured the "rays" that were actually streaming in, as well as being able to add a whole bunch of detail in some of the darker areas...

Glad to see it was able to remind you of fond memories.

We'll get more pictures this weekend off the South Carolina coast at "The Fredrick Day," a sunken freighter from 1914...

 

[MissAmberDiva]

Wow! Nice pictures. Thanks for sharing! I especially like the second one.