cleung
Contributor
I went up to Tobermory alone to dive with Diver's Den as their afternoon boat on Friday Sept 15 was scheduled to go to Caroline Rose and The Caves, two sites I have never been to but was really looking forward to. Diver's Den requires four divers and good weather (minimal wind) to go to these two dive sites and we had a total of five divers today who all agreed to make it to these sites. Diver's Den requires a minimum of two divers for a boat to the other dive sites.
First stop was at the Caroline Rose. Buoy line straight down to the bow of the wreck and maximum depth was 53 feet. Water temperature was 17 degrees C by my computer. The wreck was okay but not spectacular. Saw its propeller as well as the typical gobies, crayfish and a school of small perch. After a few rotations of the wreck, I had enough and ended my dive at 33 minutes.
Next dive was The Caves which was the site I was really looking forward to be at. As we approached the site, there were lots of people on land along the rock ledges and cliffs. Some were swimming and jumping in. For this dive, the Captain suggested that we swim at about 20 feet depth towards the right hand side of the rocks and look for the opening into the grotto. We found it and at first it was dark but as you enter it, you can soon see the sunlight shining through the grotto. There were a few snorkelers who jumped into the water near us. There were spots on the rock ledges to actually stand and poke our heads out of the water once in the grotto.
We used another cave opening which is smaller than the one we used to enter, to exit the grotto back into the bay. I did not see this second opening from the bay when we were searching for the bigger cave opening but once inside the grotto, I was able to see this smaller one with light at the end of the opening to the bay.
Once back in the bay, we made our way across to the other side of the entire site. Here after passing by large boulders, we found a cave with quite straight sides of limestone. Again at the end of the cave, we were able to stand on a ledge and poke our heads out of the water again. From there we headed back to the boat.
Dive time was 47 minutes with maximum depth of 24 feet and 19 degrees C water temperature. The Caves was an amazing dive and it is the closest thing I've been to that is probably similar to a cenote dive.
Driving time to Tobermory from Mississauga was four hours and after loading gear at Diver's Den, parking was a few minutes walk away at the parking lot on Legion St for $15 for the entire day. Like other Canadian dive shops I used so far, divers have to carry all gear and tanks by themselves to the boats. One thing I should point out about Diver's Den is that they were reluctant to get me on the morning boat which goes to the deeper wrecks. Even though I'm a Master Diver (NAUI) who have done many deep dives, they said I should have more cold water dive experience before attempting the deeper dives at Tobermory. Maybe next year then.
First stop was at the Caroline Rose. Buoy line straight down to the bow of the wreck and maximum depth was 53 feet. Water temperature was 17 degrees C by my computer. The wreck was okay but not spectacular. Saw its propeller as well as the typical gobies, crayfish and a school of small perch. After a few rotations of the wreck, I had enough and ended my dive at 33 minutes.
Next dive was The Caves which was the site I was really looking forward to be at. As we approached the site, there were lots of people on land along the rock ledges and cliffs. Some were swimming and jumping in. For this dive, the Captain suggested that we swim at about 20 feet depth towards the right hand side of the rocks and look for the opening into the grotto. We found it and at first it was dark but as you enter it, you can soon see the sunlight shining through the grotto. There were a few snorkelers who jumped into the water near us. There were spots on the rock ledges to actually stand and poke our heads out of the water once in the grotto.
We used another cave opening which is smaller than the one we used to enter, to exit the grotto back into the bay. I did not see this second opening from the bay when we were searching for the bigger cave opening but once inside the grotto, I was able to see this smaller one with light at the end of the opening to the bay.
Once back in the bay, we made our way across to the other side of the entire site. Here after passing by large boulders, we found a cave with quite straight sides of limestone. Again at the end of the cave, we were able to stand on a ledge and poke our heads out of the water again. From there we headed back to the boat.
Dive time was 47 minutes with maximum depth of 24 feet and 19 degrees C water temperature. The Caves was an amazing dive and it is the closest thing I've been to that is probably similar to a cenote dive.
Driving time to Tobermory from Mississauga was four hours and after loading gear at Diver's Den, parking was a few minutes walk away at the parking lot on Legion St for $15 for the entire day. Like other Canadian dive shops I used so far, divers have to carry all gear and tanks by themselves to the boats. One thing I should point out about Diver's Den is that they were reluctant to get me on the morning boat which goes to the deeper wrecks. Even though I'm a Master Diver (NAUI) who have done many deep dives, they said I should have more cold water dive experience before attempting the deeper dives at Tobermory. Maybe next year then.
Last edited:
