So what did we do today? We swam in the deepest blue hole in the world! I’m not sure I can adequately describe the experience but I’ll give it a try.
The first thing I should do is give you a little general information about blue holes and ocean holes. First they come in many different flavors. Most blue holes are simply crater type openings in the ground, somewhere inland of the coastline, which are filled with salt water. Some come with inhabitants such as various sea creatures that have managed to survive in the altered salinity of a blue hole.
The blue hole we went to yesterday had vivid red shrimp and small crabs. The blue hole that we went to at Oven Rock was in a cave and it had shrimp too but they were colorless ghost like creatures with antenna that were longer than their body (because they live entirely in low or no light?). There was a massive blue hole in Eleuthera, which had all manner of fish in it and some of them were huge, that hole obviously had a passage to the ocean or had been “stocked” by the locals.
An ocean hole is different in that rather than being a deep hole filled with salt water on land it is a deep hole in the ocean floor. Often these holes are charted, however, sometimes they are not. Ocean holes are only discernible by the color change on the floor of the ocean. Often the depth will go from 2 meters (about 6 ft deep) to 16 meters (around 50 ft).
Dean’s blue hole is unlike any of those mentioned above. This blue hole is just on the edge of the ocean, not technically on land, as most are, yet not out in the ocean as an ocean hole would be. At Dean’s blue hole you can actually walk to it from the beach. Coming from the beach the water is only between ankle and knee deep. However, when you reach the edge of the hole the depth change becomes evident as the water color changes from a translucent teal color to an incredible deep blue in a matter of 10 ft vertical.
Another unique feature I must describe to you about Dean’s blue hole is that the hole, while on the ocean, is not really open to the ocean. If you imagined walking from the beach into the ocean and out to a blue hole you might well imagine pounding surf (especially as Dean’s blue hole is on the Atlantic side of the island). In most cases you would be correct but in this particular case it would not be true.
Dean’s blue hole is almost entirely surrounded by a high cliff on the ocean side. This creates an unusually calm lake like environment within the blue hole. It also creates a perfect platform for “cliff” diving.
I have to tell you that this was the most incredible environment I can imagine for snorkeling. Actually, prior to arriving at Dean’s I would never have imagined that this amazing layout could exist. Close to the beach and out to the edge of the drop off there are fish of many different types, colors, shapes and sizes, as you might find on a reef. When you reach the edge of the sand where the hole begins to slope at a more extreme rate the sand from the beach literally pours off the bottom of the ocean floor in a seemingly perpetual “waterfall” of sand. It cascades down into the blue darkness of the ocean hole below.
In a matter of 15 feet or so from the shore the depth goes from ankle deep to 663 feet deep. I wish each of you could see and experience this opportunity, as I feel inadequate to describe it. The best I can do is to explain to you how magnificent it seems. While the visual impact of Dean’s blue hole is incredible other senses are stimulated as you step into the water. The temperature of the water is an immediate attention grabber. At the edge of the beach on your approach into the blue hole some of the water is a lot like bath water, surely 80 degrees or higher. As you wade into the water and when you begin to swim it is impossible not to notice the temperature differential. The water temperature must vary 15-20 degrees sometimes in the space of the length of your body.
This wouldn’t be unexpected as you would anticipate that the deeper the water the colder the water temperature. Here, for some reason, probably convection and current, the hot and cold spots are not orderly. Sometimes the coldest water would be right at the shore and as I swam out over the abyss the temperature would go up so dramatically that it took my breath away. At times I found that my face was blasted with hot “bath” water while my feet were assailed by water, which seemed barely half the temperature (I’m sure it wasn’t that dramatic but it felt that extreme).
The kids enjoyed the snorkeling as well and they added another experience to their lengthy list with cliff jumping. Since there was no risk of hitting the bottom the kids both jumped off the high walls of the outside of the blue hole. Oh, Boyd did too. I’m the only one that didn’t, I decided someone needed to stay on shore and take photos. Speaking of photos I hope you enjoy. They say that a photo is worth a thousand words so if I’ve been inadequate in my description, perhaps these photos will make up for it.