Diving The Caves and Caverns of Abaco Island
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Bahamas Underground can make it happen!
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A rebreather diver floats in Dan's Cave. Photo by Curt Bowen |
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| Cavern and Cave Diving on Great Abaco Island
For years, cave and technical divers have by-passed the beautifully decorated caves and blue holes of the Bahamas for one reason, Logistics. There have been very few dive facilities in the Bahamas that have had the expertise or equipment required to support cave diving in the Bahamas on any level. Those that did have the resources had shied away from cave divers due to perceived liability issues, or just plain lack of knowledge of the environment.
The Bahamas Underground is the first technical and cave diving facility of its kind in the Bahamas. We currently support individual divers or small groups (3 divers) with a generous rental equipment program, guided dives, in-house TRAINING for all levels.
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Cave diver Tim Higgs enters an Abaco blue hole. Photo by Curt Bowen |
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| Too many caves and not enough time!
The underground passages and caverns of Abaco Island are some of the most fascinating places on earth. Gigantic pillars in Nancy's Blue Hole make a diver feel as though they are floating through a massive forest, while the air clear water and seemingly endless passages in Dan's Cave leave even the most experienced explorers coming back for more.
There are more than 40 blue holes and underwater cave systems documented on Great Abaco Island thus far. Only a handful of the caves on Abaco have been fully explored, leaving plenty of opportunities for divers with varying experience levels.
Inland Caves
The inland caves on Abaco are generally located within the dense pine forests of the interior of the island. Some of the more remote sites are accessed by the old logging roads that criss-cross the island. The lengths and depths of the caves on this island vary greatly. With sinkholes that drop to depths in access of 340 feet, to the shallower, 80 foot deep, highly decorated passages of our lens caves, Abaco offers caverns, caves and sinkholes that will accommodate all levels of certifications and experience levels. The Bahamas Underground's customized van is set up for the most convenient cave diving experience.
Ocean Caves
The creeks and protected lagoons of Cherokee Sound, Bight of Old Robinson, John Doctor Cay, Spencer's Bight and Crossing Rocks are literally riddled with shallow, decorated ocean caves. Diving in an ocean cave is a bit more challenging than inland diving and requires timing the tides. Ocean caves are affected by the tides, creating strong currents. Local knowledge of tides and each cave's slack period, allows divers to safely access these amazing systems that are found no where else in the world. The psychedelic colors of the marine life that inhabit every surface of the walls, ceiling and formations of the caves are only found in the Bahamas.
The Bahamas Underground is able to guide divers to ocean caves in our 21 foot Carolina Skiff that can handle up to 4 cave divers. The skiff is the perfect platform for accessing the shallow creeks on almost any tide. This boat is flat and wide, provides ample room for all divers and has a well designed ladder that makes getting in and out of the boat a snap for anyone. This is the only way to go if you want to dive ocean blue holes!
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Lobsters are often found thousands of feet back in ocean caves. Photo by Curt Bowen |
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This large shrimp and the colorful sponges found on the walls are typical of ocean caves in the Bahamas. Photo by Curt Bowen |
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A diver floats near a small passage in an Abaco cave. Photo by Curt Bowen |
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| Training
Bahamas Underground offers TRAINING in Cavern, Intro to Cave, Apprentice Cave, and Full Cave certifications from the National Association of Cave Divers (NACD) and from the International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers (IANTD). We also offer specialty certifications to extend your cave diving experiences including Nitrox, all levels of Technical and Trimix Diving as well as Survey, Stage and Side Mount/No Mount cave diving.
Bahamas Underground provides guided cavern and cave diving throughout the islands of the Bahamas. If you have a particular place or island that you are interested in diving, then Bahamas Underground can make it happen.
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