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Bear's Den
by Laura Radford
This is an advanced dive
for experienced divers only. The cave, or “den” begins at a depth of fifty feet
and stretches down into the reef. There is a narrow
passage,
what is called a “chimney chute” in cave diving circles, that leads into a large
room. This is particularly advanced because in addition to the added risk of
diving with in an overhead environment, the chute is very narrow.
Divers must proceed single file and there are long sections where turning around
is impossible. It is recommended that an experienced divemaster lead this dive.
Now that I’ve scared you, I’ll tell you the positive. Light filters though the
reef in several spots and seems to magically illuminate the passages. There are
even large holes in spots. It is a very fun dive if you are comfortable with
caverns.
Cavers Only
Not all dive operators go to Bear’s Den. Anthony’s Key Resort not longer will
take divers there, but most West End operators will go if you request it. If
caves are not your thing, Bear’s Den is terrific dive on top of the reef.
Laura Radford is a writer and a PADI
certified SCUBA Instructor. In 1995 after completing an MFA in Creative
Writing she moved from Alaska to Costa Rica where she taught diving and lead
SCUBA tours. She later returned to her home state of California where she
worked as a high school English teacher.
Currently Laura is working as a
freelance writer and is traveling and diving in her free time, which is most
of time. She was drawn to Honduras by the extraordinary diving off the Bay
Islands but was lured to mainland by Honduras’s natural beauty and
fascinating history.
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