Dive one:
Gear up, weights on and take a giant stride from the jetty, into the water. Even directly at the jetty, it was already three meters deep and there was no risk of hitting bottom when jumping in - even with the 25kg extra that I was wearing.
After a few basic exercises, we decided to take a swim around the bay, where we found out where the name comes from. Quite simply, at the bottom of the bay, there is a 2x2 meter anchor which has over the years been overgrown with vegetation and now hosts a bit of marine life.
After a short swim, we returned back to the jetty, climbed up and changed our tanks.
No rest, underwater exploration awaited!
Dive two:
Gear on, buddy check done and another stride into the water!
This time we performed basic compass navigation exercises and go around the bay area along the bottom.
A this time, it had gotten windy, causing waves and additional streams. It made it slightly more challenging to swim but at the same time it was good to experience and to learn how to properly move in streamy waters.
Before it could get any worse, we decided to dive into one of the underwater caves, just so that we could experience it.
We saw the cave entrance. It was dark, as if the darkness from inside was slowly trying to reach out and swallow all the light.
We swam towards it. Into the darkness.
The further inside we got, I could notice how the light quickly faded. Even just moving 10-20 centimeters made the lack of light very noticable. But we continued and it gradually became darker.
A few seconds later, I could barely see my instructor in front of me. He was less than a meter ahead.
All I could see was the instructor's tank. That little bit of silvery surface upon which light from outside the cave entrance was reflected.
The tank looked as if it had stopped, then it started to ascend.
That's when I hit it - the surface.
We had come up inside an air pocket in the cave. It was pitch black all around me, but I still looked around - hoping to see any small source of light - and I found it. A little bit of light was still shining in through the cave entrance behind me. I could see the colours out there, a few colours a the bottom - but inside the cave, it was completely dark.
I heard my instructor say something about regulators, but not exactly what it was. General assumption being that you can take it out and breath normally, I decided to do so.
Gear up, weights on and take a giant stride from the jetty, into the water. Even directly at the jetty, it was already three meters deep and there was no risk of hitting bottom when jumping in - even with the 25kg extra that I was wearing.
After a few basic exercises, we decided to take a swim around the bay, where we found out where the name comes from. Quite simply, at the bottom of the bay, there is a 2x2 meter anchor which has over the years been overgrown with vegetation and now hosts a bit of marine life.
After a short swim, we returned back to the jetty, climbed up and changed our tanks.
No rest, underwater exploration awaited!
Dive two:
Gear on, buddy check done and another stride into the water!
This time we performed basic compass navigation exercises and go around the bay area along the bottom.
A this time, it had gotten windy, causing waves and additional streams. It made it slightly more challenging to swim but at the same time it was good to experience and to learn how to properly move in streamy waters.
Before it could get any worse, we decided to dive into one of the underwater caves, just so that we could experience it.
"Oh boy, was that an experience, alright!"
We saw the cave entrance. It was dark, as if the darkness from inside was slowly trying to reach out and swallow all the light.
We swam towards it. Into the darkness.
The further inside we got, I could notice how the light quickly faded. Even just moving 10-20 centimeters made the lack of light very noticable. But we continued and it gradually became darker.
A few seconds later, I could barely see my instructor in front of me. He was less than a meter ahead.
All I could see was the instructor's tank. That little bit of silvery surface upon which light from outside the cave entrance was reflected.
The tank looked as if it had stopped, then it started to ascend.
"I followed - keeping my hands right above my head, bracing for impact from any ceiling I might hit."
That's when I hit it - the surface.
We had come up inside an air pocket in the cave. It was pitch black all around me, but I still looked around - hoping to see any small source of light - and I found it. A little bit of light was still shining in through the cave entrance behind me. I could see the colours out there, a few colours a the bottom - but inside the cave, it was completely dark.
I heard my instructor say something about regulators, but not exactly what it was. General assumption being that you can take it out and breath normally, I decided to do so.
The air was thick, humid, but somehow it was also very, very dry at the same time. It hit me that this air has most likely been in this cave for several months - if not years.
"Quickly, regulator back into mouth and start breathing tank air again!"
I looked around the cave once again and I could see a light. It was coming closer. Then suddenly, it hit the surface approximately 5 meters away from me and illuminated the whole chamber.
The light was a group of more experienced divers who had been further
inside the cave, apparently entered from the other side - but it was a
5-10 minute swim through it and thus nothing we should be doing at this point as we had already used half our air at this point.
It was not a very big chamber we were in, perhaps 2 meters between surface and ceiling, but it still looked incredible because of the natural stone formations and the fact that there was normally no light here.
Having never been in an underwater cave before, I decided to class this experience as very cool due to the initial excitement and the way the light just seemed to disappear.
Swimming out of the cave, I felt a bit of relief. It was nice to see the light again and be able to use your eyes properly.
On our way back, the current had gotten stronger. We had to cross the stream completely and swim back on the other side of the bay, otherwise it would have taken a lot longer time to get back - or a lot more effort. But in the end, we made it back!
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