You’ve probably seen that famous image of a street junction entirely occupied by one mammoth sinkhole that appeared in Guatemala City in May 2010. That particular event caused complete chaos, though incredibly most reports state that only one death resulted from the sudden appearance in the middle of a freak storm. In parts of Central America, such an event is not uncommon, and some are far more beneficial than this unfortunate monster in the centre of Guatemala’s capital. The Great Blue Hole of Belize, for example, lies 100kms off the mainland, and offers the largest and most inspiring diving spot of its type. Though you’ll have to put some fairly serious effort in to get there.
The underwater sinkhole is located in the heart of the world’s second largest reef system, part of which is named ‘Lighthouse Reef’. The sinkhole offers an extremely dramatic drop off: just a few metres from the reef itself, the water plunges down to a depth of 125 metres. The system was created by the collapse of an ancient underground cave system, developed when the area had far lower sea levels sometime numerous millennia ago. What remains is a startling 300 metre drop off that looks incredible from the air, and still more impressive from just under the surface.
The sight has plenty of inspiring history, with marine biologist and explorer Jacques Costeau amongst the first to explore its depths. Costeau later declared the spot one of the top ten diving destinations in the world, and let’s face it, he should know. For experienced divers, the sinkhole gets progressively clearer as you head down its 125 metres depth , and reveals some stunning remnants of the cave that once formed its outer structure. There are even the remains of stalagmites and stalactites, as well as land-based rock formations scattered through the cave walls and along the sinkhole floor. Some of them are as much as 12 metres in length.
My very own fellow blogger Erin reviewed the Belize system in general, including the Great Blue Hole, during her trip in 2006, as follows:
”It is home to one of the most diverse ecosystems in the entire world, although only about 10% of that has been discovered. Only tropical rainforests rank higher on the biodiversity scale! Some of the reef’s features: 70 hard coral species; 36 soft coral species; 300-500 species of fish and hundreds of invertebrate species.” Read her full review here.
Black Tip, Caribbean and Nurse Sharks are all regularly seen over the sinkhole, as are groupers of up to an incredible 80kgs. There are also occasional Hammerhead Sharks, though they’re not seen regularly enough to be of major concern to recreational divers. You’ll need to be reasonably experienced to take part, but when you do get into the Great Blue Hole, you’ll have the chance to dive on either the north or south walls, both of which can be purchased as part of day diving trips from nearby resorts when the weather conditions allow. The entire system is a World Heritage Site, which, like all reef-related systems, requires divers to avoid contact with the reef itself. If you’ve made it all that way, let us know just how dramatic things are, and what wonderful sea life you managed to spot!
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