This is a dive into a fissure between two separating tectonic plates. I did this dive early January, 2017. Even though the guide said it was a good day weather-wise for the time of year, air temp was about freezing, some wind, occasional snow. There is no indoor place to gear up, and it takes at least an hour for the group to do so and have the briefing, then a walk to the entry point with all gear on, including tank and weights, then a wait for your group’s turn to enter the water behind other groups. We were a bit cold before we got to dive.
After the dive there is a long hike back to the parking area with gear on. I think the trip description says the total walking distance with gear on is about 400 meters round trip.
I was surprised how many people were there to dive or snorkel. I don’t think most of them knew what they were getting into. There were a lot of shivering people.
I was also surprised that many of the divers had just recently been Open Water certified. For them the constantly changing depth of the dive and the challenging circumstances created buoyancy problems. Since many or most of the divers had no dry suit experience, buoyancy was controlled via BCD rather than the dry suit.
Having said all of that, I highly recommend the experience. We were a group of six divers with two guides, who were friendly, supportive, experienced, professional. The provided dry suit and kit was very good.
There is no wild life to see, but the scenery is spectacular in the super clear water. View pictures online. Time in the water about 50 minutes. Deepest allowable depth by park rules is 18 meters.
The water temp by my computer was 36 deg.F.
Do it, but be aware, particularly in the winter. Great experience with great guides and support team. Nice scenery on way to the national park.Biggest negative: winter weather and the crowd, though they do space people out so not much interference.
After the dive there is a long hike back to the parking area with gear on. I think the trip description says the total walking distance with gear on is about 400 meters round trip.
I was surprised how many people were there to dive or snorkel. I don’t think most of them knew what they were getting into. There were a lot of shivering people.
I was also surprised that many of the divers had just recently been Open Water certified. For them the constantly changing depth of the dive and the challenging circumstances created buoyancy problems. Since many or most of the divers had no dry suit experience, buoyancy was controlled via BCD rather than the dry suit.
Having said all of that, I highly recommend the experience. We were a group of six divers with two guides, who were friendly, supportive, experienced, professional. The provided dry suit and kit was very good.
There is no wild life to see, but the scenery is spectacular in the super clear water. View pictures online. Time in the water about 50 minutes. Deepest allowable depth by park rules is 18 meters.
The water temp by my computer was 36 deg.F.
Do it, but be aware, particularly in the winter. Great experience with great guides and support team. Nice scenery on way to the national park.Biggest negative: winter weather and the crowd, though they do space people out so not much interference.