*Early* Sunday morning, headed up to Paradise Springs for a couple of dives, Zardoz having convinced me it was worth waking up a full hour before I even have to get up for work, on the Sunday of a holiday weekend no less...
Arrived around 8:40 and were the second group of divers there.
*Side note - if you are AT ALL, EVER prone to being bitten by insects, you might want to consider spraying EVERYTHING with bug repellant. Meandering down the path to the entrance, we noticed a rather large population of mosquitos. However, not until we were actually geared up and walking down did they begin to attack in earnest, leaving an estimated 30+ bites in less than 2 minutes on any exposed skin.
They actually continued to bite as I rushed through mask, fins and snorkel application, and ducked under as fast as possible. I swear they were screaming "No!!!!" and did not actually leave my skin until I was 2 feet under.
Besides the itching, first dive vis was spectacular, in the 100+ range I'm sure, as no one had yet applied the mixer. After cruising down to the 90 foot "beware of death" sign, we headed back up to the main cavern area at 45' or so. Temp hovered around 73/74.
Second dive, after some 10 other groups had shown up, including some families with children, vis dropped to perhaps 20'. This meant we spent more time looking minutely at fossils and such on the walls, which was still quite entertaining.
Either way, excellent location, company and an amusing way to spend a day!
Arrived around 8:40 and were the second group of divers there.
*Side note - if you are AT ALL, EVER prone to being bitten by insects, you might want to consider spraying EVERYTHING with bug repellant. Meandering down the path to the entrance, we noticed a rather large population of mosquitos. However, not until we were actually geared up and walking down did they begin to attack in earnest, leaving an estimated 30+ bites in less than 2 minutes on any exposed skin.
They actually continued to bite as I rushed through mask, fins and snorkel application, and ducked under as fast as possible. I swear they were screaming "No!!!!" and did not actually leave my skin until I was 2 feet under.
Besides the itching, first dive vis was spectacular, in the 100+ range I'm sure, as no one had yet applied the mixer. After cruising down to the 90 foot "beware of death" sign, we headed back up to the main cavern area at 45' or so. Temp hovered around 73/74.
Second dive, after some 10 other groups had shown up, including some families with children, vis dropped to perhaps 20'. This meant we spent more time looking minutely at fossils and such on the walls, which was still quite entertaining.
Either way, excellent location, company and an amusing way to spend a day!
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