Sara and I just got scuba certified...yes in New Mexico! I was skeptical at first but then I found out the certification dives were done at Santa Rosa Blue Hole, a fantastic karst spring an hour and change from Albuquerque. As a bonus we would get the diving at altitude (5000 ft) skill signed off. The spring emits about 9 million gallons of clear spring water a day from the cave system beneath into a vase-shaped pool 80 ft deep and 80 ft across. We were quite happy to wear 7mm wetsuits as the water was a brisk 61 degrees Fahrenheit and we would quickly chill despite the very hot day.
The blue hole is very popular with divers and swimmers alike which meant by 10am the place was absolutely packed. The first three dives were used to demonstrate skills. The last day was purely a tour- we went down to 60 ft depth and spiraled our way around the walls back up to the surface. There were lots of weird things hanging out in the cracks and crevices placed by divers- stone statues, action figures and the like.
All together the weekend was really nice. We had a nice drive through
lightning storms to Santa Rosa via remote backroads. We camped near
Santa Rosa Lake, where we had a beautiful sunset contrasted with more lightning. And the diving itself was great. I would definitely dive there again if I had the opportunity.
No comments:
Post a Comment