Page 139 - Florida and the US Caribbean Isles
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ne of the thrills of diving a wall is most generally dramatic expression of the fish normally found out in the open sea.
coral reef, will at times plummet directly Anything could be cruising the wall which
O the marine life. The wall and the reef into the great trenches thousands of feet adds to its mystique. Out of the depths,
deep. Walls offer an opportunity for divers come eagle and manta rays, marlins, tunas,
atop it serve as a barrier between deep, to experience much of the ocean’s diver- kingfish, mackerel, mahi mahi and sharks of
open ocean and the shallower, protected sity in one place. At the top you’ll find the all types, including hammerhead, bull, tiger
water on the shoreward side. Pelagics of- kaleidoscope of corals and small fish that and Caribbean reef, to cruise the wall for
ten emerge from the depths to feed on you would expect to see at any healthy reef their next meal.
the smaller fishes that inhabit shallower - star, brain, elkhorn and staghorn corals,
water. The wall itself provides domain for sea urchins, sponges, sea fans, parrotfish, A dvanced divers can try “wall flying,”
innumerable smaller creatures. The honey- trumpetfish, angelfish, queen triggerfish, with an underwater vehicle, zipping in
comb of tiny cracks, crevices and holes that sergeant majors, and more. Descend further and out of small caves and crevices 60 feet
dot a wall provide hiding places and living and the harder corals give way to forests of below the surface. Technically you reach
quarters for tunicates, mollusks, crinoids, gorgonians and soft corals, which reach out a top speed of only 2.4 mph, but it feels a
crabs and other invertebrates of all sizes in a silent rhythmic dance. Sponges appear lot faster. The DPV (diver propulsion vehi-
and shapes, plus, of course, sponges and in their most magnificent forms - all shapes cle) allows divers to see more sites in less
coral. Many walls are so heavily blanketed and sizes. With less sun penetration, one by time and experience the fun of underwater
with marine life that you can spend an en- one, the colors disappear as you descend - travel. This Extreme Adventure, offered by
tire dive observing the tiny creatures that first red, then orange, green, and so on un- Stuart Cove’s Dive Bahamas, consists of two
inhabit just a few square yards of the wall. til everything appears brown. Strobe lights 30-minute dives - one over a shallow bot-
However, don’t become so engrossed that and flashlights, however, bring those colors tom to become familiar with the operation
you forget to occasionally glance over your back. Lurking inside crevices you may see of the DPV and the second is a flat-out run
shoulder to see what might be passing by in moray eels, shrimp, spiny lobsters and even along the wall.
the blue water behind you. squid and baby octopuses, waiting for
nightfall. Then there are the big pelagics,
W alls offer breathtaking vistas, popu-
lated by colorful marine life and are
