Belize and the Blue Hole

This post was published in March of 2019, but covers events from late 2017.

While talking online, I mentioned the possibility of going on a dive trip to my friend Chris O’Brien. He was immediately pretty excited. Neither of us had been to Belize (for any appreciable amount of time), so we immediately began planning.

 

Belize is a small country just south of the popular Quintana Roo province in Mexico, where most tourists visit Cancún or Cozumel. We had our sights set on much less of a tourist attraction, in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize. San Pedro is just a 90 minute ferry ride from the largest city in the country, Belize City.

San Pedro is small but bustling with life. Immediately after stepping off the ferry, you’re met with smells of street food and saltwater. You can hear laughter, music, and golf carts.

The plan for the trip was nine dives. Six with Scuba School and three with Amigos Del Mar Dive Shop. Scuba School was our first choice, but they don’t have a boat large enough to travel to the Great Blue Hole.

A nurse shark in Hol Chan Marine Preserve

The reef in Belize is incredible. Schools of fish bustle through a tropical rain forest of coral. Sharks curiously follow you along your trip, as you glide over sea fans, lobsters, and anemones. I was blown away by how healthy the reef was.

The Belizean consider the reef part of their livelihood, and the sense of responsibility really shows. Everyone in the community is committed to keeping the reef alive and healthy, to educate the public about the ocrean, and to control the lionfish population. (Lionfish are an invasive species in the Caribbean, and hunting lionfish is even subsidized by the government in some cases).

A canyon near San Pedro, leading to a 90 ft maximum depth.

The Blue Hole, Belize

This is usually the first thing people ask about when you mention you’ve been diving in Belize. The Blue Hole is a 400 ft deep underwater sinkhole. It was originally an underground cave formation, but its ceiling caved in when the oceans rose around 10,000 years ago. The stalactites can still be seen looming over divers who brave the depths.

I started with a giant stride off the back of the boat, holding my mask and regulator in place and stepping over the abyss. Once I gave the OK symbol, I began the descent down to 50 feet.

The gradual slope ends with a shear cliff: It’s straight down to 400 ft from there. The bottom is very far outside the limits of recreational diving, so our plan for today is 130 ft. Chris and I later discovered we had gone beyond the dive plan, with our dive computers reading 137 and 140 ft. This dive is still, to this day, my deepest dive.

The beginning of the descent into the Blue Hole. The bottom of this site is over 400 feet down, and inaccessible by recreational diving.

The Blue Hole is incredible, even if it’s not my favorite type of dive. The cave formations are staggering, the scale is really hard to wrap your head around. The hole is almost 1000 ft across, 400 ft down, and has 30 ft stalactites inside. I dropped down to 130 ft, and swam through these stalactites like a ghost of a bat, drifting through a 10,000 year old tomb of a cave.

A cautionary tale…

Before stepping off the boat, divers should always check their own gear. It’s very common for tourists or first time divers to let the dive shops take care of everything. This is extremely bad practice. Chris got to experience why during this dive.

Chris shuffled towards the end of the boat, with the characteristic wobble of a 300+ pound gear and human Christmas tree, covered in gauges, tubes, and tanks. He checked his mask, regulator, back up regulator, and his gauges. The crew rushed him forward, wanting to get everyone in the water as fast as possible. “Hurry up, man, we’re getting in” they said.

“Hold on, wait. Is the reg open on my tank? I have 500 pounds.” They had tried to rush him in the water with an empty tank. They quickly stopped, got him back in a chair, and replaced the tank. It became clear to me on this day, that a diver’s life is in his own hands. At best, this could have been a short and boring dive for Chris. If he had been very complacent, it could have ended much worse.

Safe Diving,

-Jake