Jackson Blue: What An Underground River Looks Like From Deep Inside

[sabbath999]

Here's one of my shots from Jackson Blue, a major spring in Florida. It was taken with a point & shoot camera at about 70 foot depth while I was hanging on to a rock to keep from getting myself blown out of the cave in high flow. The sound of the water flowing through that cave around you when you are in it is indescribable... you as much feel the vibration of it through your bones as hear the rumble.

Kids, do not try this at home (I have the training to be in that cave), diving in caves and caverns is a deceptively easy way to die.

For a frame of reference the cave mouth you see there is about 40 feet across.

 

[CMfromIL]

Really cool picture. I'm PADI certified (open water) and would NEVER go cave diving...you are a brave man.

 

[sabbath999]

Really cool picture. I'm PADI certified (open water) and would NEVER go cave diving...you are a brave man.

Thanks. It's not really about being brave, it's about being trained and equipped to do it. Open water gear is good for open water, but once you go into an overhead environment like a cave you need to both have the equipment and training in handling it... plus you need to be able to deal with severe task loading.

For example, I took this picture one handed, while hanging onto a rock with my other hand. At the same time, I had to be aware of where my buddy was, what she was doing, what depth I was at, my air pressure in both tanks (I dive sidemount), my no decompression limit (since this wasn't a deco dive), where the line out was (in case the vis should get blown out), managing my light, yadda yadda yadda... while at the same time composing and shooting a picture that is a difficult shot on dry land (have to spot meter on a point & shoot in an underwater housing is a trick in it's self).

The thing about diving in a cave that's really different than diving in open water is the amount of redundancy you have to have... and how critical it is to screw up your gas managment. In open water, if you start with 3000 PSI in your tank, and you look down and you have, say 1100 left, no problem, you start swimming back towards the boat and try to get to the safety stop with about 700 or so left in your tank. In a cave, you look down and see you are at 1100 and are in as far as you are going... well, you are dead, you just don't know it yet. You don't have enough air to get out. Most people who die in caves are open water divers who go in there to take a look, thinking the water is clear... then they stir up silt and lose their way, or their one light dies, or they get lost, or whatever...

Here's a somewhat dated but very informative video about how NOT to dive in caves, IMHO it should be a part of every open water class to teach people to stay OUT of overhead environments without training and equipment:

 

[Big Mike]

I'm not claustrophobic, but just the thought of being underwater in a cave...gets my heart rate up. I'm sure the experience is like nothing else, but no thanks.

So thank you for doing it, and sharing the photo with us.

 

[shootermcgavin]

Yeah I third that is one crazy sport, even cave exploring is crazy sometimes. Some people just freak out from scuba diving, I have to imagine with cave diving that number goes through the roof. I've seen people freak out in a 5 foot deep pool just training...

 

[paigew]

wow that is an amazing photograph! So did you swim down through that opening against the current?

 

[caledonia84]

I really like photos that are difficult to get or from places 99% of the population will never see, what a place!, great capture

 

[CMfromIL]

That video confirmed that I'll never be cave diving. Add skydiving, and chumming for great whites while in an inflatable life raft as well.

 

[sabbath999]

For a bit of perspective, here's a snapshot of my wife (in her open water rig, not set up for cave diving... note, she's not in the cave ) in the millpond around Jackson Blue. The dark blue hole you see downslope behind her is the mouth you are seeing from the other side.

 

[spacefuzz]

love the photo, great sense of mystery.

Im a caver as well, and have done some pretty insane things but still have a ton of respect for cave divers. stay safe!

most stressful thing I did was 2 ft high crawlway, water 2 inches from ceiling, helmet off, crawling backwards with my nose against the ceiling, trying not to make waves

 

[Big Mike]

That shot of your wife is a bit of a mind bender. It's hard to tell if we're looking up or looking down. Cool location.

 

[sabbath999]

wow that is an amazing photograph! So did you swim down through that opening against the current?

Thanks, it depends on the cave and the current. Jackson Blue can run from "ripping fast" to "not so much". If it's ripping, you basically use your hands and crawl into the cave in the current. You couldn't swim hard enough to not be blown back out the mouth. When the current is up, you go around the side of the cave, then you pull yourself into it using the "pull-and-glide" technique you learn in cavern/cave diving classes... the day I took the first picture the current was running decent but not as strong as it sometimes gets.