Page 128 - The British Big Four

he Towers – The Towers is a site in the Abacos that features mas- Some form of marine life is found in literally every crack and crev-

T sive coral pinnacles that can reach up to 18 meters in height. ice. The currents that often intimidate cave divers are literally the
They’re covered in a variety of hard and soft corals, and they’re sur- conveyer belts of food that support one of the most interesting and

rounded by large schools of beautiful fish, as well as filled with the diverse ecosystems in the world. The walls, ceiling, and floors are

tiniest creatures. Turtles and rays can also be spotted there. Tunnels covered with filter feeding animals such as sponges, hydrocorals,

and caverns are found throughout, making it the perfect site for di- tunicates, hydroids, and thousands of other animals all competing

vers who are looking for something a little different from your typi- for their own little place in the cave.

cal reef dive. The site is easy to access by boat, and it’s appropriate A quarium - lots of small tropical fish swimming around the nu-
merous sea fans and soft coral. Lion fish are starting to over-
for all divers. Depths range from 17 meters to 23 meters.

O cean Blue Holes - The ocean caves and blue holes of Abaco populate the area. Lion Fish are not indigenes to the area and have
are truly natural wonders. These caves are usually fracture or fewer enemies than when in their native waters. It is a shallower
solutional caves, and are located off shore or in shallow tidal creeks dive going no deeper than 40 feet but averaging around 20. The

and lakes throughout the island. Ocean caves are usually tidally in- shallow depth can result in having to deal with the swells.

fluenced, making cave diving a challenging effort. Each cave has its
own lag time (time of slack current) with relation to the tides. As
rouper Alley - 40ft. Numerous tunnels beneath a monstrous
Gthe tides move on and off the shallow banks, and in and out of tidal coral heads

creeks, the caves act as conduits for the moving water. This means W ayne’s World - 70ft. A tour of the outside of the barrier reef
that currents in some of these caves can be so strong that diving
during the wrong part of the tidal cycle can have disastrous results.

However, diving these amazing systems can be safely accomplished T he Cathedral - Huge cavern where shafts of sunlight dance on
by studying the tides at each site, and documenting the currents in the floor
relation to local high and low tides. Local knowledge is paramount,

if the dives are going to be done with any degree of safety. The

ocean caves are very different from the sterile caves found inland.