Spectacular underwater cave passage called the Flag Room in Diepolder II in Spring Hill, FL. Taken at a depth of over 340 feet on a 9 hour dive. Photos by Kirill Egorov.
The Diepolder caves are on the property of the Sand Hill Boy Scout Camp on Hwy 50 between Brookesville and Weeki Wachee Springs.
The Flag Room
Description:
The caves consist of what is known as Diepolder 2 and Diepolder 3. Very large rooms and extreme depths are encountered, with depths of 360 and 300 feet respectively. A very interesting article and photo spread appears in the March 1999 issue of National Geographic Magazine. You must be at least Abe Davis or Wakulla Award rated (meaning at least 100 full cave dives in at least 5 different systems) in order to dive with the guide here. You will have to either provide proof of one of these 'awards' or have a written log book documenting at least 100 cave dives. Due to the extreme depths encountered, these sites are restricted to guided dives conducted through the Florida Speleological Researchers, Inc. FSR guides include:
Diepolder II and Diepolder III are located on the Sand Hill Ranch Scout Reservation, Hernando Co. Florida. The property was donated to the Boy Scouts after the Diepolder family passed away in the mid to late 70's. The Florida Speleological Researcher's (FSR) was developed after the boy scouts took control, and this program is the oldest working guide program in existence today. Guidelines were developed by FSR to insure that all diving operations are carried out with the utmost regard for the safety of the members, respect for the caves and property, and sincere courtesy to the landowner. The submerged caves of the Diepolder systems are among the most unique discovered within the Western Hemisphere. Diepolder II is the deepest cave in the continental US. The Directors of FSR have been chosen from the most active, experienced deep cave divers within the state of Florida. It is the intent of the BOD of FSR to provide and maintain access for all qualified members through this program.
Some of the Regulations for Diving:
All divers must be full cave trained through either the National Association for Cave Diving (NACD) or the National Speleological Society-Cave Diving Section (NSS-CDS). There are no exceptions.
All divers must show proof of 100 cave dives, through logbook entry, or the Abe Davis or Wakulla Award.
Trimix gas dives shall require the appropriate trimix certification.
All divers must be members in good standing of FSR, Inc. There will be no exceptions.
Ratio for diving Sink #3: Any single guide may accompany no more than three guests within Sink #3 at any time. To secure this ratio, at least one guest must have a minimum of five visits into Sink #3 prior.
To dive Sink #2 - You must have a minimum of 3 dives in Sink #3 before proceeding to Sink #2.
Ratio for diving #2: Any single guide may accompany no more than two guests within sink #2 at any time. To secure this ratio, at least one guest must have a minimum of at least five dives within Sink #2 prior.
History: Will Walters discovered the Diepolder system by air. D III is a max depth of apprx. 300' D II is a max depth of apprx. 365'. In 1979 Dale Sweet of Winter Haven did a dive to a max depth of 360' in the II sink. This was the first time a diver had explored a Florida cave while breathing mixed gas. Dale had placed a small American flag with a secret message on the back for all those who would follow. Sheck Exley made the same dive using compressed air a year later. Then in 1987 Bill Gavin and Lamar English did the same dive using mixed gas (which was just now starting to come into mainstream). Through the 80's little was known about the cave system beyond the pit and there were no maps. March 23rd of 1991, a group of divers organized a Project to gather more information about the system beyond the Flagroom. Some of the early guides included names such as Sheck Exley, Dale Sweet, Bill Main, Steve Stratsma, Bill Gavin, Vaugn Maxwell, just to name a few.
Click here for a current list of Diepolder guides (4.5.2007)
The Flag Room in Diepolder II in Spring Hill, FL. Taken at a depth of over 340 feet.
AAd – Drowning May 11, 1990
Diepolder Sink #2, FL
On the evening of May 11, two divers entered Diepolder Sink #2, in Hernando County, Florida, one of the largest known underwater caves, including depths in excess of 300 feet. One was a 25-year-old man from Hudson, Florida, who had completed a cave diver training course in December 1989. He and his more-experienced buddy planned to visit the downstream portion of the cave; it was his first dive at this site. Visibility was significantly reduced by recent heavy rains. Two other teams of divers were to enter a bit later. They followed the guideline through the entrance restriction and encountered near-zero visibility at the Junction Room. They took the downstream guideline, breaking into clear water on the upper circuit line. They corrected a buoyancy problem, signaled OK to each other, and began a slow descent on the lower circuit line, heading into the cave.
The lower line lies at a depth of -250 feet. Halfway through the dive, His partner noticed when the 25-year-old momentarily dropped below the line, then continued at a faster pace. This line completes a circuit, taking them back to the Junction Room at a depth of -210 feet. When they reached this point, they had re-entered the silted water. The 25-year-old suddenly lost his grip on the guideline, became disoriented and swam back down into the cave. This was not noticed by his buddy or by the other two diving teams which had been surveying and were now exiting. He reached the downstream Ballroom and after some wandering found a marked line. His buddy, meanwhile, had begun decompressing in the entrance basin, but became concerned and searched the basin at his 30-foot stop. Later, he and another diver again dove to the Junction Room but found no trace of the victim. The body was found the following day by recovery specialists after a 25-minute search, on the bottom, at -241 feet. It took three teams seven hours to complete the body recovery.
REFERENCE:
Dustin Cless, "Cave Diver Drowns at Diepolder Sink Number Two", Underwater Speleology, 17 (3), p. 6.
Diepolder III 1-2-2018 "the director's cut"
Diepolder III 1-2-2018 "the director's cut"
COMMENTS:
The victim had logged 75 cave dives and was reportedly known for pushing himself with a desire to emulate more experienced divers. The loss of contact with the guideline was the principal factor in the incident but this, and the resulting disorientation, may be due to the depth of the dive:
"Using compressed air below 130 feet severely impairs most divers. Even more pronounced effects are guaranteed below 200 feet. Beset with narcosis and the accumulated carbon dioxide that results from the unusually strenuous respiration required at depth, the victim apparently succumbed to depth induced blackout. Slowly losing buoyancy, he dropped headfirst some 40 feet before hitting bottom. Recovery divers observed no signs of struggle; the victim's mask remained in place.” It can be assumed from this description that he drowned after losing consciousness.
It appeared the victim was setting a personal depth record and, excited about seeing new cave, extended past the planned turnaround at 2000 psi air reserve. Using mixed gas might have given him a better chance of survival.
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By TERRY TOMALIN
Published Oct. 13, 2005
Beneath the shade of a live oak tree, Diepolder 2 looks like any old farm pond. It has weeds, frogs, even a few tracks from a raccoon that ambled in one night to feed on the freshwater mussels flourishing in this spring-fed basin. But the red-tailed hawk that circles above gets a very different view. From above, the hawk sees a dark blue line in the water that appears to split the pond. Eighty feet long and 3 feet wide, this line is the color of the open ocean _ a deep blue, void of light and life. Slip a few feet beneath the surface for a closer look and you will see it, a crack in the earth's crust.
Descend into the crack and the walls begin to change in appearance. The sunlight fades, the weeds disappear. The pale limestone walls entomb skeletons _ the stark remains of sea creatures that once inhabited this ancient coral reef. Below, the crack continues on, deeper and deeper, to where light cannot penetrate _ then deeper still. Somewhere, down in that unforgiving blackness, the crack ends, and the limestone wall becomes a floor. It slopes gently downward to an opening _ the entrance to one of the deepest known underwater caves in the continental United States. Dustin Clesi tried not to appear too excited. "I've prepared myself for a non-event," said the 36-year-old stockbroker from Tampa.
Diepolder 3
He had dived in this cave system hundreds of times. A certified cave diving instructor, Clesi is familiar with the dangers of deep caves such as this. Many times he has helped retrieve the bodies of cave divers who made the fatal mistake of entering caves without sufficient training. Caves are unforgiving _ a small error in judgment, like wandering a few feet away from a guide line, can cost your life. On this warm March morning, Clesi's eyes revealed his enthusiasm. He and five companions had spent weeks preparing for this dive _ an attempt to match or break the record for the deepest cave dive in the United States. They had gone over every detail of the dive plan once, then twice. Then they did it again. The previous weekend, they had stashed $40,000 of scuba equipment at strategic points deep in the cave system. They had backup systems and safety systems, and backup systems for their safety systems.
Diepolder 3
After weeks of preparing, planning, plotting, they were ready to do it. Like a child on Christmas morning, Clesi longed to see what treasures awaited. A few feet away, diving partner Gordon Watkins checked his equipment for the final time. Then, talking to no one in particular, he spoke his mind. "You know, sometimes you wake up in the middle of the night and think, "What if?' " Watkins said. "What would you do if something went wrong?" He expected no response. Everyone knew the answer. You die.
But the six divers had left nothing to chance. The dive would be highly technical, so they brought the best equipment money could buy. What couldn't be bought, they made.
Others had made similar dives before. In 1979, Dale Sweet of Winter Haven dived to 360 feet in this cave. It was the first time a diver explored a Florida cave while breathing mixed gas, which allows divers to go to greater depths. It also established Diepolder 2 as one of the deepest known underwater caves in the continental United States. At the end of the line Sweet used to mark his path, he left a small American flag with a secret message for those who followed.
A year later, a Live Oak schoolteacher named Sheck Exley made the same dive using compressed air, a feat that helped make him a legend in the cave diving community. Then in 1987, Bill Gavin and Lamar English, two other experienced divers, repeated the dive using mixed gas. Yet little was known about the cave's lower reaches. There were no maps, and nobody knew what, if anything, was beyond the Flag Room. Did the cave "wall out" and end a few feet beyond the flag? Or did it continue, twisting and turning, deeper and deeper, until it disappeared into the Floridan Aquifer? "We are explorers," Clesi said a week before the dive. "Our job is to map and survey, not set records." The dream of all cave divers is to discover new passageways, especially those connecting known bodies of water. The mystery they longed to discover was whether Diepolder 2 connects to the Gulf of Mexico or Weeki Wachee River. "The water has to go somewhere," Watkins said. "We want to answer those questions. The only way to do that is go down and look." On March 23, the six cave divers, calling themselves "Team Diepolder 91," converged on the sink basin, which is in Hernando County. The expedition was sponsored by the Florida Speleological Researchers (FSR), a non-profit organization dedicated to the exploration of the Floridan Aquifer. These FSR members have negotiated exclusive access to dive the country's deepest cave system, which draws its name from the one-time owners of the property.
Sheck Exley
The divers, with more than 3,000 cave dives among them, split into three teams. Clesi and Watkins, the most experienced in that particular system, would be the "push divers." Their target was the Flag Room and beyond. Jim King, the president of a Tennessee-based diving technology company, and Larry Green, a carpenter from Spring Hill, would follow as "safety divers." Their job was to assist the "push divers" on the way down and back. If an accident did occur below 300 feet, there would be little the safety divers could do without endangering their own lives. Rich Nicolini, an aluminum siding installer in Spring Hill, and James Schlesinger, an employee of King's, would provide surface support. Shortly after 11 a.m., the divers slipped into their long underwear and dry suits.
Clesi and Watkins were the first down the crack, which at its mouth is about 3-feet wide and narrows gradually to shoulder width. With two tanks on their backs and two at their waists, they sped head-first down the white limestone walls, leaving a trail of gas bubbles in their wake. At 190 feet, the crack opened into a room. Their 300-watt electric lights pierced the darkness and lit up four gas-filled tanks hanging from the ceiling. They called this place "Home," because when they made it here on the return trip, they'd know they were safe.
They pushed on another 100 feet to where their battery-operated, propeller-driven underwater vehicles awaited. These "zepps," named for their German manufacturer and placed here by the dive team the previous weekend, carried them in a matter of minutes across the cave's largest chamber, dubbed the "Ballroom." Longer than a football field and wider than a basketball court, the Ballroom could hide a large building 200 feet underground. The divers could see 100 feet in any direction, but speeding at 6 knots, they quickly outpaced the power of the electric lights. At the end of the room, they abandoned the zepps. The divers had been breathing a mixture called trimix, which is 50 percent helium, 12 percent oxygen and 38 percent nitrogen. To breathe compressed air at such depths could be dangerous. The immense pressure can cause compressed air (21 percent oxygen, 79 percent nitrogen) to become toxic in the bloodstream. The divers dropped down into "The Pit" at 300 feet and followed a red line that vanished into the darkness. Now with the whir of the electric motors gone, the cave grew still and silent. The divers could hear the distinctive sound of helium whistling through their regulators. Punctuating their slow, laborious breathing was the steady beat of their hearts. By now, they had been in the cave system 10 minutes.
Slowly, they kicked deeper through the twisting passageway. The brilliant glare of the hand-held electric lights danced off the bare limestone walls. As they moved forward, the passage that had been bright as day became black as night. They pressed on. The limestone changed from craggy outcroppings to walls worn smooth by thousands of years of running water. Then, passing through a narrow opening _ divers call them "'restrictions" _ the team went into a room of clay. The layers of white, gray and red clay in the walls looked like somebody had run a hot knife through a mound of Neapolitan ice cream. Onward they pushed. At 350 feet, they entered the last room. There, bathed in a beam of electric light, a small flag wrapped in plastic hung at the end of the line. Clesi and Watkins stopped and saluted the flag. On the back was Dale Sweet's message: "In God We Trust." With each breath, the divers could see the pressure gauges of their tanks drop. Because of the great pressure at that depth, they were using up their gas 11 times faster than they would at the surface. But with several minutes left to explore, Clesi shined his light around the room. There at the far end, he saw a horizontal fissure. He swam toward it. Watkins followed. Carefully, he squeezed through the 2{-foot-high opening, his double tanks scraping the ceiling. Then he entered a room no human had seen before. Laying survey line as he went, Clesi pressed on for another 110 feet.
He tied the line off on an outcropping and looked ahead. The vastness of the room devoured the electric light. Clesi checked the pressure gauge on his tank _ one-third of the gas had been used time to go. He turned and vowed to return the following weekend. Now they knew there was more. Seven days later, the divers were back. They switched partners, and now Clesi found himself paired with King. The two men returned to the end of the line laid the previous weekend. This time they carried an extra tank of gas, which would allow them to explore deeper into the cave. Swimming at an average depth of 360 feet, the previous depth record, they advanced another 240 feet.
Their depth gauges soon recorded 365 feet, but they saw pits of water that reached 380 feet or deeper on either side. As their lights illuminated the room, Clesi and King discovered that it was larger than they had thought. In fact, it was not a room at all. It was a tunnel, wide enough to fit a tractor-trailer. "All of a sudden I saw Jim tying the line off," showing that King had advanced as far as he planned to go, Clesi said. "Behind him the tunnel forked it got bigger and dropped away. It blew my mind." Clesi said the twin tunnels of the Floridan Aquifer tantalized him and beckoned them on. "It was like it said, "Come on dare to find out what I'm all about,' " Clesi said. "How could we be so naive to think we could?"
Now, approaching the limit for a safe return _ cave divers use no more than one-third of their gas going in _ the team stopped its exploration. They placed a plaque at the end of the line for those who followed. Its message is a secret, reserved for those who someday might follow. "It is always an exhilarating feeling, it's the driving force," said Green. "To go and see things that have never been seen before." Later, back on dry land, the team discussed the possibility of returning to follow the forks west. They voted no. Instead, they chose to wait until better technology becomes available. "It isn't worth it," Clesi said. "It (the cave) laughed at us. It could go on and on until somebody dies." King, who manufactures deep-diving equipment, believes the team pushed the limits of human endurance and technology. "You don't want to end up with tunnel fever pushing, pushing, pushing, until something unfortunate happens."
The deep cave dives performed by Team Diepolder 91 in March show that Diepolder 2 is 380 to 400 feet deep.
Sources: Sheck Exley, Underwater Speleology.
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Florida Geological Survey Bulletin 31
Situated in water about 88 ft deep, this sink is 22.5 mi E. of Crescent Beach Submarine Spring in the Atlantic Ocean. It is funnel shaped to a depth of about 150 ft, vertical from that depth to 465 ft, and may be considerably deeper (Wilcove, 1975). Previously reported to be a freshwater spring, none of the water samples collected at a depth of 465 ft were fresh. Kohout and others (1975) suggest that Red Snapper Sink may now be a point of seawater intrusion into the Floridan Aquifer. They cite the high oxygen content of the water deep in the sink and a dye-dispersion test as indicators of a slight downward velocity of seawater in the sink.
Deep Trekker DTG2 ROV dives 400 feet to the bottom of the Red Snapper Sink.
Deep Trekker DTG2 ROV dives 400 feet to the bottom of the Red Snapper Sink.
1997 USGS Hydrology Report
Red Snapper Sink is located on the continental shelf, about 26 miles east of Crescent Beach, Florida. In 1991, advanced technical-diving techniques enabled divers to explore the bottom of the sinkhole for the first time. The opening of the sinkhole at a depth of 90 ft is approximately 400 ft in diameter. The maximum recorded depth in the sinkhole is 482 ft. The sloping sides of the sinkhole are developed on loose Holocene sand and shell from 88 to 113 ft. Pleistocene sand and clayey sand crop out from 113 to 134 ft. From 134 ft to about 380 ft, Red Snapper Sink is a vertical shaft measuring about 150 ft in width to 170 ft in length. The walls of the shaft from 134 to 164 ft transect slightly indurated Pliocene shelly sand. The walls are composed of moderately indurated Pliocene silty sands and sandy silts from 164 to 206 ft. From 206 to 335 ft, the walls are developed in clayey sands and sandy clays of the Upper Hawthorn Group (Miocene). The Lower Hawthorn consists of a dolomitic limestone containing phosphate pebbles and carbonate interclasts with phosphatic rims from 335 to 380 ft. The top of the Ocala Limestone occurs at 380 ft, and below this depth, the walls of the shaft are undercut. Water samples collected at the bottom show normal seawater specific conductance and chloride and sulfate concentrations. During a dive to 482 ft, sea water was observed flowing into small caves at the base of the wall, indicating that during the dive period, the sinkhole conveyed saltwater into the Floridan aquifer system. Seismic profiles show that Red Snapper Sink is the surficial expression of a dissolution collapse feature that possibly originated in Upper Cretaceous or Paleocene rocks. Similar buried features in northeastern Florida could provide a hydraulic connection between freshwater zones and deeper, more saline zones of the Floridan aquifer system. The presence of these collapse features could help explain the anomalous distribution of elevated chloride concentrations in parts of eastern Duval County.
Steven O. Donathan, 50, was last seen Saturday afternoon by a student he was leading on a 100-foot dive to the Canadian destroyer Yukon. The two became separated, and Donathan never resurfaced.
Steven O. Donathan.
The 366-foot decommissioned Canadian warship is a popular diving destination in the so-called Wreck Alley off the coast of San Diego. Rescue divers searched the ship until dark Saturday. The search continued Sunday, when divers made about 60 descents and searched 90 percent of the ship's interior, lifeguards said.
The search resumed at 6 a.m. Monday, and divers located Donathan's body several hours later. Divers were unable to recover the body immediately, because it was wedged in an area that made access difficult, lifeguards said.
"For someone as experienced as Steve, the Yukon should have been a piece of cake," said Steve Haynes, former president of San Diego Council of Divers, who heard that the missing diver was Donathan.
The Yukon was deliberately sunk two miles off the coast five years ago.
AshDiver85: HMCS Yukon Wreck Dive- Full Penetration
AshDiver85: HMCS Yukon Wreck Dive- Full Penetration
HMCS Yukon (DDE 263)
HMCS Yukon (DDE 263) was a Mackenzie-class destroyer that served in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and later the Canadian Forces. She was the first Canadian naval unit to carry the name. She was named for the Yukon River that runs from British Columbia through Yukon and into Alaska in the United States. Entering service in 1963, she was primarily used as a training ship on the west coast. She was decommissioned in 1993 and sold for use as an artificial reef and sunk as such off San Diego, California in 2000.
The ship was initially purchased by the Artificial Reef Society of British Columbia anchored on the New Westminster docks for almost a year before it was bought for $250,000. Yukon's hulk was purchased by the San Diego Oceans Foundation which towed her from CFB Esquimait to San Diego, California in 2000. She was gutted and cleaned before being scuttled in 100 feet (30 m) of water in the Pacific Ocean off Mission Bay in San Diego as an artificial reef on 15 July 2000. However the day before she was to be scuttled, she flooded in rough weather and sank at the site on 14 July. The explosive charges intended to sink her were still intact on board, and United States Navy Seals were sent in to remove the charges. The wreck was off limits for weeks while this was being done.
The ship ended up lying on her port side, with her masthead lying 60 feet (18 m) below the water instead of the planned 30 feet (9.1 m). This made recreational diving on the wreck much more difficult. By December 2012, five people had died while diving on Yukon's wreck. The ship's bell of Yukon is currently located in the Yukon Legislative Building.
It was also the site of a fatal dive in late 2000 when Monica Vila, a 41-year-old recreational diver, died as she descended toward the warship with two family members.
Another experienced diver, Mia Tegner, a 53-year-old marine biologist, died about a week later after diving on the Yukon and other sunken ships. Authorities say she ran out of air as she was coming to the surface, missing a decompression stop. Instead of heading to a hyperbaric chamber, investigators believe she grabbed another tank and dove back in to decompress and was never seen alive again.
DIVE ODYSSEY
DIVE ODYSSEY
Dive Odyssey - A meditative journey into the depths of water - and mind Dive Odyssey takes the viewers on a journey into crystal clear darkness where the only light ever is man-made. The film is an ode to thousands of years of mystical experience of water. It is also a tribute to science-fiction classics, some of which may be recognized in the film. The film follows the Explorer (Gemma Smith) through her exploration of an unknown planet. A strange signal is reaching for her from the depths of ice. She makes her way through the snow, looking for the source. Once she finds the spot, she begins a journey into the dark, ice cold world submerged below the mountains. She falls through the water column. The signal keeps calling her further into the depths. The sense of time and self start fading. It is like a space journey where physical and mental lose their borders. Thought and matter mix. She encounters a shape in the darkness. It is the Silver Diver (Andy Torbet). During the encounter, she turns into something ancient, communicating through her movement and trying to find the connection. What first seems like something hazy and hard to understand turns into enlightenment and realization.
Director & Story JANNE KASPERI SUHONEN The Explorer GEMMA SMITH The Aquanaut ANDY TORBET The Explorer 2 JENNI WESTERLUND The Aquanaut 2 SAMI PAAKKARINEN Editor SAMU KUUKKA Score And Sound Design SAMU KUUKKA & VILLE KUUKKA Director Of Photography JANNE KASPERI SUHONEN 2Nd Camera RICH STEVENSON Color Grading & VFX JUSSI ROVANPERÄ Dive Suits FABRIZIO TOSONI/URSUIT & JIM STANDING/4TH ELEMENT Costumes SUVI HÄNNINEN Underwater Lightning VELI ELOMAA/ SCUBAMAFIA Still Pictures THOMAS BROUMAND & ALVAR BROUMAND/ BROUFOTO Graphic Design TEO TUOMINEN & JOHANNES NIEMINEN Web Design & Website’s Typography KARRI KUOPPALA Accommodation And Snowmobile Transport In Plura TORSTEIN TRAELNES & INA TRAELNES/ VISIT PLURA Dive Team In Ojamo Mine ANTTI APUNEN ARON ARNGRIMSON FARBRIZIO TOSONI JENNI WESTERLUND LAURA TUOMINEN PASI LAMMI PASI SUOMINEN PHIL SHORT SAMI PAAKKARINEN TONI SUOMINEN TONI NEVALAINEN VELI ELOMAA Dive Team In Plura Cave FELIX BUTSCHEK OSCAR SVENSON Dive Team In Mäkelänrinne Pool ARI ILOLA JENNI WESTERLUND KRISTIAN ENGLUND LAURA TUOMINEN PASI LAMMI TUOMAS MÄÄTTÄNEN VILLE LESKINEN Lights In Mäkelänrinne Pool ROBERT BONSDORFF JARKKO VIRTANEN ARTTU KOKKONEN Thank You AKE ARMINEN/ VALOFIRMA FABRIZIO TOSONI/URSUIT HANNA JÄRVINEN/Matila Röhr Productions HANNU-PEKKA LÄHDEAHO/SONY FINLAND Jan Petersen/JJ-CCR JARNO SEPPÄNEN/ LUKSIA JIM STANDING/4thElement JOONAS SCHWARTZBERG / STUDIOVARUSTAMO JYRI KÄHÖNEN KAROLIINA LEISTI PASI SUOMI SUUNTO DIVE TEEMU LIAKKA TRAELNESS FAMILY/ VISIT PLURA
Edd Sorenson - Dominican Republic Cave Body Recovery | Speaking Sidemount #29
Edd Sorenson - Dominican Republic Cave Body Recovery | Speaking Sidemount #29 - Speaking Sidemount #29 excerpt - Edd Sorenson talks with Steve Davis about his recent successful cave body recovery in the Dominican Republic. Please note the description of the recovery is graphic. Viewer discretion is advised.
The Estramar font cave system
The Estramar font,or Fountain of Salses, is an exsurgence located at the foot of the Maritime Corbières on the territory of the commune of Salses-le-Château, in the Eastern Pyrenees. It is one of the two exsurgences feeding the Leucate Pond. The Estramar make is the deepest resurgence explored in human diving in the world. In 2019, it is the seventh deepest natural siphon in the world. The gradient of the cavity is 286 meters, for a developmentN 2 2,900 metres3. The cavity is completely drowned and only accessible to divers equipped with autonomous scuba suits experienced in the techniques of underground diving.
Entrance To The Estramar font cave system
The water has the distinction of being brackish due to the regression of the Mediterranean (between 100-120 m)to the Upper Miocene (Messinian) more than 5 million years ago which resulted in Karstification below the current sea level. Its temperature remains constant throughout the year (17-18 degrees Celsius). Its flow is the largest in the region with an average of 2.11 m3/s. Completely drowned, the network is explored in underground diving technique. The contribution of recyclers and synthetic blends has allowed the maximum known depth to be pushed back to 262 metres in 2015. On the same date, its extension reached 2,900 metres. The construction of the A9 motorway operated by the company ASF, as well as the successive diving accidents have resulted in significant restrictions of access to this cavity.
Cave Diving in France legendary Font Estramar
Cave Diving in France legendary Font Estramar
Exploration began in 1949 by Mr. Dupas and Geroges. In the early days, the cavity saw some big names pass by such as Jacques-Yves Cousteau in 1951 and Haroun Tazieff. The depth reached in 1955 is 50 meters, the techniques of the time not allowing to go lower. In the 1970s, Claude Touloumdjian reached 90 m N 3 850 metres of galleries explored. In 1991, ARFE (Font Estramar Research Association) was created and the depth of 164 m was reached on 15 August 1997 by Cyrille Brandt. Pascal Bernabe continued to climb to 184m on 4 June 2006. Jordi Yherla, a Catalan diver, descended to 191 m without finding a siphon in July 2013. On August 16th, 2013, Xavier Méniscus, equipped with double recycler and assisted by a large international team, continues the exploration of the cavity in the well of the giant Loukoum located 513 meters from the entrance, up to the depth of 248 meters, bringing the development of the cavity to about 2,900 meters.
Xavier Méniscus at The Estramar font.
In July 2015, the same diver, with the help of about fifteen crew members, postponed the exploration of about thirty meters to the depth of 262 meters. In June 2019, Xavier Méniscus continues his exploration over a distance of 50 m horizontally at a depth of 262 meters to reach the lip of a vertical well. After these three explorations, on December 30, 2019, the diver descended to 286 meters in the bowels of the Font Estramar, at a distance of 1,020 m from the entrance.10,11 It thus breaks the world record for underground diving previously held by Nuno Gomes (283 m in Boesmansgat.
World Record Cave Dive -286.2m (939 feet) 30-déc-2019 VF - Xavier MENISCUS - Font Estramar
World Record Cave Dive -286.2m (939 feet) 30-déc-2019 VF - Xavier MENISCUS - Font Estramar
J. Claude's fatal accident in 1955 resulted in a temporary ban on diving. Since the diver has not been found, the portion of the gallery where his body is supposed to rest is obstructed. Some time later, however, the body was found, trapped in a chimney. Another diver dies in Font Estramar in May 2008. On May 24, 2012, a specialist in the place, the Gruissanais Jean-Luc Armengaud also lost his life there. On 23 January 2016, a 50-year-old diver died on 23 January 2016, and on 10 June 2017, a 44-year-old Finnish man died. Belgian stuntman Marc Sluszny disappears in a diving accident on June 28, 2018; On July 9, Laurent Rouchette,a diver-speleologist from the French Speleo Secours, died during the search for the body.
Marc Sluszny
Marc Sluszny (born in Antwerp, February 1, 1962 – June 28, 2018) was an adventurer, sportsman, keynote speaker, mental coach and author. Through extreme sports he searched to overcome his mental and physical boundaries. He broke several records and participated many times in the European and World Championships in different disciplines. During the last few years, Marc focused on coaching executive teams and high-level athletes.
Marc Sluszny
In 1982 Marc Sluszny played tennis for the Belgian National Davis Cup Team. In 1988 he swam solo across the English Channel from Dover to Cap Blanc-Nez(10 hours 30 min). In 1994 he broke the world record bungee jumping (6720 m) from a hot air balloon. In 1995 he became Belgium sky surfing champion and finished 4th at the World Championships in Eloy, Arizona. As a member of the Belgian Himalaya expedition he climbed, in 1997, the Annapurna (8031 m) without oxygen. In 2000 he broke the Belgian hang gliding record aerobatics. In 2002 he was a member of the Belgian Olympic Fencing Team and finished 8th at the World Championships and 12th at the European Championships per team. As first Belgian ever he participated in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart yacht race. In 2005 he finished several 24-hour auto races, among others Daytona and Nurburgring. In 2006 he flew across the United States from coast to coast with an old-timer seaplane (Lake Buccaneer). In 2007, he broke the altitude record (11,300 m) in a glider above the Andes. In 2008 he was team leader of the first Belgian diving expedition to the wreck of the HMHS Britannic (-120 m). In 2009 he finished 4th at the World Championships Powerboat racing. In 2011 he was the pilot and captain of the national Belgian bobsleigh team (two- and four-man) and participated in both the World and European Championships. Furthermore, in 2011 the movie Sharkwise was released in the Belgian theaters, a documentary about his diving adventure outside of the cage with the great white shark. In June 2012 he ran down the Belgacom building in Brussels, setting a new world record (15'56) in the vertical run discipline. And in 2013 Marc dived to a depth of 168 meters (on open circuit) in the Blue hole in Dahab (Egypt). During the month of July 2016, Marc was part of a US diving expedition to the sunken liner ship, the SS Andrea Dona (its 60th anniversary).
2011: SHARKWISE this docu-film tells the compelling story of Marc Sluszny's quest to discover the true face of the ocean's most feared predator, the Great White Shark. The movie is narrated by Martin Sheen and directed by Lieven Debrauwer.
Sharkwise - Trailer
Sharkwise - Trailer
The Belgian extreme sportsman and stuntman Marc Sluszny has been reported missing during a diving trip in France. Sluszny’s disappearance in the area of Perpignan has been conformed by the federal foreign affairs ministry, which is in contact with his family in Antwerp. According to local sources, Sluszny and a partner had set off to complete a 125m dive in the gulf of Font d’Estramar on Thursday. The pair got into difficulties, and the partner was able to come to the surface to alert the emergency services. The emergency line joining the two had become broken. Sluszny was not at that time recovered, and rescue operations were suspended on Thursday night, only to be resumed on Friday. Sluszny became known as a member of the Belgian Davis Cup tennis team, and as a fencer. He later branched out into extreme sports, swimming the Channel, bungee-jumping from a hot-air balloon and climbing Annapurna without oxygen.
In 2012, suspended by a rope, he ran upside-down up the Belgacom tower in the North station district, from bottom to top, a distance of around 100m, in 15.5 seconds.
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
Viroit Cave Albania 2015
Viroit Cave Albania 2015
Words:
Vic Verlinden
Located near the old town of Gjirokaster, Viroit Cave has been on my list of special dive locations I have wanted to visit for a long time. Unfortunately, there was not a lot of information available on the Internet about diving in this country. And regarding cave diving in Albania in particular, there was absolutely nothing. Even for a European country, it was a dark spot on the map. My desire to dive at this unique location was stirred by a short film made by a Polish dive team. The film clearly showed the spectacular underwater landscape of the cave, with crystal-clear water. I decided to take a chance and put together a team of divers to go to Albania to dive and explore this cave. After thorough preparation, the travel arrangements were made. We were ready to leave for Albania with our team of three divers and one non-diver.
Gjirokaster Albania
As we knew there were no local dive shops in the area, we decided to take along all of our dive and film equipment in a large paneled van. Karl van der Auwera and I would dive with rebreathers, and Tom van Herp would make the dives on open circuit. Our plan was to cross the distance from Belgium to Albania in two days. In total, we had to travel approximately 2,400km. We planned our first stop in Croatia, where we arrived after a drive of more than 18 hours. The next day, we still had to drive another 800km. However, the roads were not as good on this stretch, so it took us another 15 hours to get to our destination. It was late in the evening when we arrived at our hotel in Gjirokaster. We had pre-booked our hotel rooms, so our check-in at the reception desk went smoothly. During our stay, the hotel owners were very accommodating, and the service was excellent.
Gjirokastër Castle is a fortress in Gjirokastër, Albania . Gjirokastër Castle is situated at a height of 336 metres (1,102 ft) The citadel has existed in various forms since before the 12th century. Extensive renovations and a westward addition was added by Ali Pasha of Tepelene after 1812. The government of King Zog expanded the castle prison in 1932.
The next day, we were up early to reconnoitre the dive site at Viroit Lake. Before our arrival, I had received some information from a Polish diver about the location and where we should make our entry into the water. This was no trivial matter, as the lake was fairly large. Upon arrival at the lake, it became apparent that we could not drive the car up to the water entry point. The road was blocked by a barrier, which was locked with a padlock. The distance from the parking area to the entry point was roughly 200m. It would have been a hellish job getting all the dive and film equipment to the entry point. After some negotiation with the local authorities, the barrier was opened for us. At first sight, the conditions in the lake looked hopeful. However, the water flowing from the cave had a significant current. The visibility, on the other hand, was spectacular. One could see 30m straight into the depths. We quickly prepared ourselves for the first dive.
Viroit Lake Albania
The banks and edges of the lake were densely overgrown with aquatic plants, but we quickly found a place where it was less so. The first one of our team to go down was me, and after I swam through the plants, I could see the sloping banks for the first time. It was an impressive sight. The water was crystal clear, and the visibility was at least 40m. The sun's rays penetrated the smooth surface of the water and reached down to the lake bottom at 30m. I immediately started filming, and when my buddies were ready, we descended together to the bottom of the lake. The entrance to the cave was at a depth of approximately 30m, but it soon became apparent that the current was too strong to enter without a guideline. We therefore immediately decided to continue our first dive outside the cave. Although we changed the initial plan, it turned out to be a fantastic experience. The dive site was really indescribable, with the swaths of vegetation and the unusual rock formations.
Divers decend to the entrance of Viroit Cave, Gjirokaster, Albania. Photo by Vic Verlinden.
Diver at the surface of Viroit Lake, Gjirokaster, Albania. Photo by Vic Verlinden.
After the first dive, our team held a meeting to discuss how we should swim into the cave. We decided to put a guideline inside, which would enable team members to pull themselves inside, along with their cameras. The task of laying the guideline and fixing it inside the cave was to be executed by Karl (my dive buddy of many years). I myself would wait at the entrance, in case problems arose. However, it was only a short distance into the cave where the current was found to be the strongest. Karl had attached the guideline to a large boulder a short time later. The rest of the team could now swim into the cave fairly easily for further exploration. However, with a large camera in hand, it was still a chore for me to swim against the current. Yet, the sight of the beautiful rock formations made up for the extra effort.
Diver at entrance to the shaft in Viroit Cave, Gjirokaster, Albania. Photo by Vic Verlinden.
Once inside the cave, we had to swim a long way through a lengthy corridor to get to a larger chamber. Here, the corridor made a steep decline. It was a vertical descent for us, in very clear water. The color of the rock formations varied from dark brown to light yellow. With our powerful lamps, we were able to illuminate large parts of the cave, and this produced spectacular video images. Our team descended to a maximum depth of 60m. In the area surrounding Viroit Cave, there were absolutely no facilities available to treat decompression incidents, so we wanted to stay on the safe side. We also limited our bottom times, as one of the team members was diving open circuit.
Divers explore a narrow corridor between the rock formations of Viroit Cave, Gjirokaster, Albania. Photo by Vic Verlinden.