Cave Course Skills...

[MikeFerrara]

Vortex...

Back in September my wife and I participated in a survey project there for the owners. I'm still waiting for a copy of the map that resulted and the video that was shot of the project. They have a copy of a map in the office that includes the work done prior to september. Ask to see the map that Jason, Steve and Sue provided (we were just doing setup which means getting up early to mix gas and doing a couple dives a day to haul tanks in to the cave and pull them back out again.

I've seen some OW divers back in there that scared the daylights out of me. For those who haven't been there like Genesis said the gate is about 300 ft back at a depth of abour 105 ft. They'll give you the key to the gate if you're cave trained.

Lots of OW divers have died in that cave. I don't like the lights they have in there. Besides giving OW divers a false sense of security, I think they're ugly and make the cave look like a construction site.

I know an OW instructor who went back there with a freind. Both were in single tanks. The instructors buddy had a problem with his reg and signaled OOA. The instructor ran and left him knowing that he didn't have enough gas to get them both out. Apparantly the guys reg started to work again and he made it out.

 

[Genesis]

Vortex...

Back in September my wife and I participated in a survey project there for the owners. I'm still waiting for a copy of the map that resulted and the video that was shot of the project. They have a copy of a map in the office that includes the work done prior to september. Ask to see the map that Jason, Steve and Sue provided (we were just doing setup which means getting up early to mix gas and doing a couple dives a day to haul tanks in to the cave and pull them back out again.

I saw a laminated map that appeared to be the same as what is on the web.

A couple of the pictures on the web from their site in the cave are, well, a bit scary. Folk in single tanks with snorkels, at 45 degree angles eh?

There is a map on the web, and this is the one on display in the shop....
http://www.floridacaves.com/vortexcave.JPG

The info on the web says that sidemount is needed beyond the gate, but I don't know how far back. I've talked to at least one person who say that's total BS; that he has been back there with the key well beyond that point and backmount is fine. To the point of the gate there definitely isn't a problem; there's lots of room vertically going back that far.

I've seen some OW divers back in there that scared the daylights out of me. For those who haven't been there like Genesis said the gate is about 300 ft back at a depth of abour 105 ft. They'll give you the key to the gate if you're cave trained.

Lots of OW divers have died in that cave. I don't like the lights they have in there. Besides giving OW divers a false sense of security, I think they're ugly and make the cave look like a construction site.

I know an OW instructor who went back there with a freind. Both were in single tanks. The instructors buddy had a problem with his reg and signaled OOA. The instructor ran and left him knowing that he didn't have enough gas to get them both out. Apparantly the guys reg started to work again and he made it out.

Well, apparently at one time they were bottling water, because there is some hose back there that looks like it was used for a water pickup, and some conduit that is on the bottom that looks like it was related (e.g. for an underwater pump.) Both end before the grate, but not far before the grate.

Either that or they were dredging up sand! Hmmmm... maybe that's where they got some of the sand for the beach?

When I was there a buddy team was in the cavern area; I waited until they had left before going in, as I didn't want them following me. They were silting up the cavern pretty bad and were in traditional OW kit..... I only have ONE long hose....

The flow in there is fairly high; I rode it out without having to kick a stroke (pun intended), and the bottom is pretty sandy, so if you DO make contact you won't silt things to zero vis instantly. Plus the conduit makes a real solid permanent guideline...

I wouldn't go in there with a single tank, or without a can light, backup light (one's ok since they're providing the second!) and reel, even just to the grate.

I didn't mind the lecture and I DO like the access though - its quite a pretty cave. Nowhere near as tight as some of the wrecks we pentrate, and no sharp corners to rip your suit or old electrical cables to hopelessly tangle you up either

As far as people cacking themselves, yeah, I can see how that could happen. Not paying attention to thirds could be real bad, as well as not having a redundant system with you. The thing is if you kept your cool even having only a couple hundred PSI of gas would get you out, because the flow allows you to just sit and surf, so to speak. If you started huffing though or were truly OOA you'd be toast. I think I only burned 100psi on the way out from the gate to the cavern....

I went up there just to get some bubble time as we've been blown out for literally a month here, and I wanted to do some skills. The overhead was an unexpected bonus. The only biatch I ran into is that I ran out of time long before I hit thirds; I think I clocked 102' at the gate. I had taken a set of double 72s that I had air-topped because I had only expected 40-50' depths; without the Nitrox my time down there wasn't long enough, and I didn't have a bottle for deco with me either (didn't expect to need it!)

The two "artificial caves" are neat curiosity pieces..... but I want to know WTF the blue barrel is doing wedged (full of air) up in one of them

 

[MikeFerrara]

The pipes you saw are used to vacume sand out. When Doc baught the place the entire cave was full of sand. There had been a grist mill on the property that blocked the flow and plugged the whole thing up. He spent a couple years digging in the beginning.

That map is an old one. The next time you're there ask Connie to show you the new one. I don't know if the September data has been added yet though.

I'm not sure about distances but you can go quit a way past the gate in backmount. There's a restriction just past the gate but backmounts fit easily. Beyon that it's big for several hundred feet and then turns to a low wide bedding plane after a vertical fisure. This is the prettiest part of the cave IMO. It's still high enough for backmount though. Further in there is a high flow restriction that's definatly sidemount only and then it's tight. I haven't been all the way to that restriction because I was carrying too many tanks to have a stage of my own. I could probably get there on just back gas but there are enough spots that are tight enough that I don't care to try.

The divers who were doing the work past that last restriction were getting stages back there by going through first and then pulling the stages through with a line. This is on video also. Rick M posted a short video clip on TDS he took of my wife and I hauling some tanks in on our last day there. It was a light load cuz the sidemount divers were just doing some last minute double checks on that day.

When we were working in there they were raising the water level in the basin during the day to cut the flow down a little. Cutting the flow down too much proved counter productive because the restriction is also a drop off and low flow allowed the sand to fall back down which made things a little uncomfortable for the divers working in and past the restriction.

 

[Genesis]

Cool...

It stoked me enough to get the cave cert.... so there 'ya go.. but only 'cause I want the key! And access to Jackson Blue, and others...

Makes sense on the hoses....

I saw a restriction just past the gate, but it didn't look bad. Not really much worse than the entrance from what I could see of it.

The box on stilts with the American Flag back by the grate was an interesting curiosity piece.... was that an intentional airspace for dredging work "just in case" when people were doing it?

There are signs up in the restrooms saying that the state has been trying to "take" the property for quite some time. Do you know what's going on in that regard? It would be a real shame if Vortex was to disappear - from reports of it as a pond/spring dive I wasn't real interested in it, but now knowing that there's a cave there, and something to actually DO, I don't mind spending the money to get in there...

 

[MikeFerrara]

Cool...

It stoked me enough to get the cave cert.... so there 'ya go.. but only 'cause I want the key! And access to Jackson Blue, and others...

Makes sense on the hoses....

I saw a restriction just past the gate, but it didn't look bad. Not really much worse than the entrance from what I could see of it.[/B]

It's not bad. It's low enough to use the ceiling to push yourself in against the flow but it's high enough that you can do it without touching on the way out with the flow pushing you. We got through carrying 4 or more extra bottles each. JB is a great dive. I dived it in March and talk about flow! All pull and no glide. It was more like rock climbing underwater than diving. LOL.

The box on stilts with the American Flag back by the grate was an interesting curiosity piece.... was that an intentional airspace for dredging work "just in case" when people were doing it?

I think it's for OW divers who get back there and don't have the gas to get back out.LOL

There are signs up in the restrooms saying that the state has been trying to "take" the property for quite some time. Do you know what's going on in that regard? It would be a real shame if Vortex was to disappear - from reports of it as a pond/spring dive I wasn't real interested in it, but now knowing that there's a cave there, and something to actually DO, I don't mind spending the money to get in there...

I don't really know anything about that.

 

[MikeFerrara]

BTW, From what I understand Woody Jasper originally put the line in Vortex. The folks we were helping added to the line. I'm not sure how much because I haven't seen the finished map yet. At the end it was no-mount and I'm not going there. I think Steves max depth was around 170.

 

[Genesis]

I think it's for OW divers who get back there and don't have the gas to get back out.LOL

That'd be a hell of a swim out from the box.... you might be able to breathe for a bit from the trapped air - that is, if its any good - but you're still 250+' back from the entrance!

I'm going to find a way to do the three-day cavern/intro class after the new year, will dive on that for a bit, and then will go back for the full card. What the hell. I'm still debating what path to take on OC/.vs. CCR for Trimix..... Once I have the full cave I'll be done with the "card collecting" in that regard.

I find the entire "how tight is that hole" thing interesting. I'm used to finding ways to get into a pilothouse or engine room in a wreck, where you have not only silt to deal with but REAL serious entanglement risks; getting entangled in inch-round electrical cables when halfway through a hatch would be EXTREMELY bad (no room to dismount or whatever you need to do to get free!) Also, its essentially guaranteed that one touch to the bottom of a compartment in a wreck will instantly zero/zero the vis and it will STAY that way - sometimes for hours, along with occasionally running into situations where the CEILING rains silt from your bubbles.....

After having played in the ocean where our vis is typically 30' or less in open water, diving with 100+' vis in a cave, with a lot of flow besides, was a real trip. An entirely different experience, and IMHO nowhere near the pucker factor that being inside a wreck at 130' with possibly very-unstable interior structure (don't touch - it might collapse on top of you!) and questionable vis has.

I didn't see a guideline back to the grate - unless you count the conduit I did run a reel back from just inside the entrance; there was a convenient piton as a "start point" about 30-40' inside

 

[MikeFerrara]

They pump air down to the box by the gate I think.

We don't run a line to the gate, although, I wouldn't tell any one that they shouldn't.

 

[Genesis]

They pump air down to the box by the gate I think.

We don't run a line to the gate, although, I wouldn't tell any one that they shouldn't.

I didn't see anything bubbling there...

It was good practice to run the line, although I wouldn't call it necessary up to the gate - the conduit and such is more than a sufficient "line"

 

[Michael Schlink]

In responce to Toodles ??? In a nut shell you should be able to hover motionless, perform a helicopter turn, ALONG with out of air drills, no mask skills and manipulation of your manifold. Be very comfortable in the water. You'll learn reel usgage, line drills etc. in class. Your cave training will/should be the best class you went through. Imagine worst case-Your in the cave system and you have an air supply problem you loose your mask your lights all quit and then you get tangled in the line What are you going to do. Fall back on your training!