Serious concerns in Belize

[campodw]

My family and I are going to Belize in a few days; my 11-year old daughter and I are going to do some scuba diving. I'm Rescue Dive certified and she's Junior Open Water. Here's my concern/warning: I've been in contact with a dive company down there, and I asked about diving the Blue Hole. I figured we could dive to my daughter's limits, and even though that's not very deep at least she could say she dove the Blue Hole. Unfortunately, we were told that the dive is 130 ft. and that everyone is required to dive to that depth to stay with the DMs. At this point, I told my daughter that we would have to give up on the idea of a Blue Hole dive because of her depth limitations. Here's where it gets really, really scary: the dive company wrote back to my saying that my daughter could, in fact, dive the Blue Hole. Unless I misunderstood, I think this means that they're encouraging me to allow her to dive to depths way beyond her training and capability. To all you newly certified divers out there - don't blindly accept what any dive company tells you about what is safe and what's not. If you just assume that they have your best interest at heart, you could be placing yourself and your loved ones in imminent danger.

 

[t4e]

you would think its common sense not to go beyond your limits, unfortunately as we know so well common sense is not so common

 

[drrich2]

Here's where it gets really, really scary: the dive company wrote back to my saying that my daughter could, in fact, dive the Blue Hole.

I think what that probably means is, they don't forbid it, so you can judge for yourself.

Richard.

 

[beaverdivers]

Agreed! Many divers make the long trip out to " The Blue Hole " that are not qualified to do this signature dive.

I was on a Live-a-board once, where they had a newly certified diver that had just finished her OW on the vessel go to 130!

It is possible to do a very shallow dive ( 20' ) at the Blue Hole, but not worth the long trip.

My conservative guess would be over 50% of the divers aren't qualified.
The end result is they don't enjoy the dive.

IMO, the Blue Hole is best around 150', if your qualified.

 

[Divejones]

as a DM i shouldn't be saying this, +1 to drrich2, certification is just another tick in the box, she is 11, from her limit to 130' needs to be done progressively that is more important than anything

 

[Hawkwood]

Go, but snorkel around the fringe on the outside of the hole - much nicer in my opinion. Then do the next dive on Lighthouse Caye - it is fantastic. That dive is worth the trip out. The Blue Hole is all about "been there, done that".

 

[peterbj7]

I have taken kids down to 80/90 feet in the BH, but that was by special arrangement and not all dive operations will permit it. A child of 11 should not go any deeper than that, and debatably not even that deep, as the body is still growing and we don't know the physiological effects of extreme pressure at that age.

If the forthcoming dive trip is to San Pedro and you'd like that option, tell me and I'll see whether it can be arranged.

I should add - I have never known a BH dive to stop at 130ft. There is a shelf at 150ft that carries stalagmites and columns and most people dive to just above that shelf, say 145ft.

 

[boulderjohn]

Maybe Hawkwood has the idea of what they are planning. The last time I was at the Blue Hole, my wife (a non-diver) and a newly certified OW diver had a very nice snorkel trip on the fringing reef. The dive operator actually had someone in the water with them. I didn't pay attention to it all that much--perhaps it is diveable as well. I also agree that the rest of the trip is what you are actually looking for.

 

[Pedro Burrito]

I dove the Blue Hole in March, 2010. The operator I used, Hopkins Divers (Hamanasi) had two groups dive the BH at the same time. The first group, with one DM, stopped at 60 feet while the second group, with one DM, descended to about 130 feet where we weaved in and out of the stalactites. They reviewed each diver's qualifications/experience/last dives on shore before we left and determined which group the diver was put in. They also scrutinized each diver's qualifications before allowing them to go to Gladden Spit on the Whale Shark dive. I personally saw them refuse to allow two people to go on that dive because they didn't have the experience.

 

[Ralph Capeling]

I should add - I have never known a BH dive to stop at 130ft. There is a shelf at 150ft that carries stalagmites and columns and most people dive to just above that shelf, say 145ft.

I have never dived below 130 feet at the Blue Hole and we never take our guests deeper than 130 feet. I do not know any reputable dive operations that does take recreational divers below 130 feet.

Regards
Ralph