Page 318 - The Dutch Caribbean Isles

Wall Diving and the Abyss

Wall Diving is not for the poorly trained or rusty diver. It does
not require unusual physical conditioning or special skill
development, but good diving fitness and mastery of basic
scuba skills are a must. Excellent buoyancy control, astute
depth, air supply and bottom time monitoring are important.

Dive a wall and you know anything can Seafans, bryozoans, seawhips and Black Coral
happen. The deeper the wall plunges the mix and mingle with the sponges, creating a

greater the chance of encountering a truly garden carpet of life. More color and the addition

remarkable experience. Sharks and other large of motion is provided from solitary and school-

pelagics can regularly be spotted at a wall’s ing reef fish.

drop-off zone. Many of the wall dives also have E very wall is similar, yet different: profile,
coral encrusted tunnels. The topography if the shape, size and predominant colors vary
Bahamas is varied with shallow and deeper sites.

Many of the deeper sites are located in the outer from site to site. One of the thrills of diving

islands and rarely visited. a wall is the marine life. The wall and the

Walls are found in Curacao and their profiles reef atop it serve as a barrier between deep,
range from those that end at sand bot- open ocean and the shallower, protected
water on the shoreward side. Pelagics often

toms 60 to 100 feet deep, to seemingly infinite emerge from the depths to feed on the

vertical descents. It is along these escarpments smaller fishes that inhabit shallower water.

of the deep reef that the majesty of coral spires The wall itself provides domain for innumer-

and the magnificence of sponges is fully realized. able smaller creatures.