Florida April/May 2009

[Duncan Price]

Deco at 6 is long. Very long - but they have at least installed a very large catfish in a hole in a tree trunk for entertainment. Kevin tries to attract it to his light head - and it bites it.

I made the mistake of sitting on the tree trunk during deco and sticking my thumb in the hole for balance. I felt something grip my thumb and pulled it out to find the catfish on the end.

Some of the caves in florida have whale bones in them - which is quite impressive given how far they are from the sea now. I haven't seen one yet but that is just another reason to dive more out there.

There are bones in the Beacon Woods system - they are not whale bones but manatee bones. Very heavy and dense.

Glad you had a good time.

[Clare]

I made the mistake of sitting on the tree trunk during deco and sticking my thumb in the hole for balance. I felt something grip my thumb and pulled it out to find the catfish on the end.

I did similar (I will not admit to sitting - merely relaxing ) and felt a nibble. It's a big one - obviously grown that way taking chunks out of divers

I spent this weekend in Holland in a lake at 3 metres. Dreaming of Florida

[Grizzer]

Thanks for the write up. Reading it took me back. I was in Florida in April and likewise the flooding limited me (or so I thought). I spent a while in Ginnie with low flow (excellent) then like you did Eagles Nest and Jackson Blue. The exit from Jackson blue was breathtaking - I close my eyes and see it now!

Thanks for taking me back.

[CALLISTO]

Thanks for the write up. Reading it took me back. I was in Florida in April and likewise the flooding limited me (or so I thought). I spent a while in Ginnie with low flow (excellent) then like you did Eagles Nest and Jackson Blue. The exit from Jackson blue was breathtaking - I close my eyes and see it now!

Thanks for taking me back.

Were you the two English guys ,One of you lived out there ,diving an inspo and a Kiss ??

[Grizzer]

Yes! I'm the one with the Inspo and my mate Higgie was on the Kiss. Where did we meet you?

[CALLISTO]

Ginnie Springs a couple of times !Well apart From Merrits Pond there wasn't much left to dive ..I have the dodgy Liverpool accent my mate is Welsh ..So that should have reminded you in its self to lock your car !

Andy

Thought we might see your mate in France as he was supposed to be in the Lot whilst we where there in May

[peterdevlin]

(I will not admit to sitting - merely relaxing

Is sitting on the tree trunk not the done thing?

[Clare]

Hey do what you want to do to be comfortable I've been known to cuddle the log in Ginnie and inflate myself into the roof in Jackson - I'm not proud just lazy when I can afford to be.

I wouldn't personally find sitting vertical comfortable anymore than I do when I'm on the surface - relaxing in a prone position when on deco is nice for me - and takes the pressure off my back.

[peterdevlin]

Hey do what you want to do to be comfortable I've been known to cuddle the log in Ginnie and inflate myself into the roof in Jackson - I'm not proud just lazy when I can afford to be.

I wouldn't personally find sitting vertical comfortable anymore than I do when I'm on the surface - relaxing in a prone position when on deco is nice for me - and takes the pressure off my back.

makes sense ... my preferred deco position was sitting on the log watching for any traffic jams that might build up going in or out: having been the prime culprit in causing one such i took vicarious delight in watching other folks do the same

;-)

[Clare]

Someone overnight gave me a little green blob for this thread - which I had forgotten about. In the time since I posted I found a video which I thought might satisfy those who had asked for photos.

They don't really get much beyond the ballroom which is the very first part of the cave but it gives a good impression of the shaft to get in which we had to do over 1 hour of deco in - each carrying a lot of gear. You'll see why it felt a little cramped

Ignore the hyperbole (I did find it on a website called - North America's top 10 most dangerous cave diving sites after all - and it's a good basic video which certainly brought back the dive for me.

YouTube - Cave Diving Eagle's Nest

The intro to the video is funny.

"Eagle’s Nest is considered one of the most breathtaking underwater cave systems in the world. Its intricacies have alternately been described as challenging and dangerous. It begins in an ordinary pond, about 200 feet wide, in the woods. At the bottom of the pond is a kind of chimney that descends hundreds of feet into a cavern large called “the Main Ballroom” beyond which are longer tunnels and crannies that descend even deeper. How far do they go? Nobody knows."

Well we do actually....