Devil's Den

Initially an access road takes you through a mile or so of horse farms, pastures and trees. This gives way to more trees, and then an entrance into what appears to be a large dive shop set out in the middle of a large field. In the "back yard" of the dive shop, picnic tables and decking surround a set of wooden steps leading down into a hole in the earth.....You walk down maybe the equivalent of three floors, deep into an underground cavern. At the stair bottom, the deck drops into the huge pool of clear water. The "pool" is BIG. Somewhere around the size of an Olympic swimming pool, but round. Above it towers the huge chamber riddled with little mini-caves and stalactites, and in the roof center a 20 foot diameter shaft of sunlight and waterfall pours through the hole in the cavern ceiling to the pool below.

Swimmers and snorkellers cascade around in the natural pool below the waterfall. Far below them, scuba divers with Open Water certifications are exploring an area enormously larger than the open air cavern above. All around the outer wall of the cavern, a much larger cavern system begins about 20 feet below the water's surface.

The scuba divers entering this underwater cavern system are continuously in sight of the light from the above water cavern. The depths reached and the penetration is limited by visual contact with light from the surface. Cave trained divers are allowed much further penetrations, using monster lights with backup lights for their back up lights. .

Many people have wondered what it would feel like to explore a cavern. Devils Den is the perfect answer for almost anybody. There is no need for special skills in scuba to enjoy this natural wonder. It was particularly attractive on the day we visited, with topside temperatures in the mid nineties, the temperature in the cavern was a comfortable 72 degrees. You could swim around in the 72 degree water until you felt chilled, then wander up into the sunlit world above to be immediately heated back up...

We saw several families enjoying the underground cavern as if it were the pool of a beachside resort. This brings unique vacation opportunities to many people who might otherwise have a horrible time finding something for all family members to do. Interesting geology aside, Devils Den can be alot of fun.

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