I just got a new underwater housing for my digital camera and last weekend we took it for a test ride at Vortex Springs FL.



Not my picture. I got it from this website here

Vortex Springs is a popular swimming park, but it`s primary customer is the hard core cave diver.



(Also not my picture)

It has a 200 ft basin with 68 degree water year round. Depths to 50 feet for the cavern dive and depths to 115 feet for the cave dive. A handrail leads back in the cave dive for 400 feet.

Pretty cool... if you`re a cave diver.



Now we`re getting to MY pictures! Tristan, Ben and Daniel...eh a little foggy after being submerged in the 68 deg water then coming up to 90 deg heat.



Cave diving is not for me. So we`re content to snorkel safely outside of it. Besides... Vortex charges a $32 fee for the priviledge of wearing a scuba tank in the park, while swimmers and snorklers only have to pay $8.

Call me cheap.




There is plenty to see outside of the cave. We did some snorkeling and free diving, and generally playing around.





Mostly I paddled around in my floatie while the boys did the free diving.


A couple of divers (strangers to us) heading into the entrance of the cave.


They would dive down as far as 30 feet. That`s how Daniel got this picture of the divers going into the cave.





Talk Box

There`s a "talk box" about 20 ft down. It`s filled with air, mostly exhaled from the divers who stop there just prior to entering the cave or surfacing. There`s a sign above warning free divers to stay out of the talk box.



Tristan coming up from a dive


Daniel and Tristan would free dive down and touch it and go below it and pick rocks up from the bottom...but they were sternly warned to stay out of it. I tried to go down to it, but my ears couldn`t take the pressure. I still don`t know how they can clear them while free diving.






Tristan, Daniel and Ben sitting on the dive platform


Hehe, I snuck up under them and stole a picture of their duck feets!



The ominous looking fish (about 3`) that swim outside of the cave entrance.



Another picture of the big fish

I chased them buggers all over the place. They wouldn`t hold still for me.




Some more pretty fishies at the bottom of the basin
Ben took this picture.



Benjamin

This is the picture I took after discovering there was an "underwater" setting on the camera. Ho HO! check this out!!





So... I`m pretty happy with the results of my little camera. The next day, we went and did some actual scuba diving in the gulf and took pictures which I`ll post in another blog.