Underwater AND... underground ?

Shared by David Szerman on May 29, 2013 in Technique

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Ask your friends : where do you like to dive ?

Do they answer Mediteranean Sea ? Australian Coral Reef ? Bali ?

And why do they dive ?

To see small fishes ? Big ones ? Wrecks ?

How many among them are going to answer they dive in Lot (France) or Budapest for the atmosphere ?

If someone does, you surely met a Cave Diver.

More and more people are interested by the dark side of scuba diving (there isn't a lot of light underground).

But why should someone try this activity ?

Frankly speaking, do not expect to see any colourful fish underwater and, for sure, you will not see any coral reef there.

But I can guarantee you that you are going to see wonderful things down there, dive environments like anywhere else, like if you were in a fairy tale.

Geological structures you wouldn't see in any lake or sea (stalactites, tubes,...)

Dive sites can be very different from one site to another one, even though they are only a few kilometers apart.

Are you ready for this kind of dives ?

Contrary to what you may be thinking, diving caves is not a privilege limited to only for very old and experimented divers.

You can get started with initiation dives with a Cave scuba instructor with a CMAS 2* (or equivalent) certification. You have to feel comfortable diving and manage your trim and buoyancy.

You will then be guided into easily accessible divesites with an instructor and... enjoy the dive....

In order to first discover cave diving in dry environments, you can find a lot of videos on Youtube or Vimeo (Keywords for example : "Font del Truffe" (France), "Ressel" (France), "molnar janos" (Hungary), ""ginnie springs cave diving" (US), "orda cave" (Russia))

Font del Truffe - France 2012 from Konrad Dubiel on Vimeo.

In French, Pierre-Eric Deseigne wrote La Plongée Souterraine: Comment entrer dans la Cinquième Dimension.

I do not know any English book but do not hesitate to share them in the comments.

Steven Spielberg directed also a cave diving movie but it is a "catastrophic" movie and Sanctum is probably the best movie to watch before your first cave dives, even if pictures are beautiful.

Next times, I will speak to you about Cave diving certifications, safety, geology...

Have a good dive !

About the author:

David Szerman
TDI Full Cave Diver
Qualifications:
TDI Sidemount Cave Diver, TDI Trimix Diver, TDI Submatix CCR 100 SMS Air Diluent Diver, FFESSM ***, PADI Rescue Diver, CMAS Ice diver
Dived in: Mexico, Poland, Guadeloupe, Egypt, Luxembourg, Israel, Belgium, France