Cave Diving in Aerolito de Paraiso, Cozumel, Mexico

Why do I do this?

I'm often asked (and believe me I've asked myself) whether I love Cave Diving because it is considered an "extreme sport" or whether I get a thrill from the inherent dangers, The answer is "no, I just genuinely love the caves." Aerolito is a very large cave system, the largest known on Isla de Cozumel and not visited by many people. Some instructors use the first 500 feet of passage as a training cave, but only a handful of divers have traversed its maze of jumps recreationally. I've been into this cave more than any other, probably because of its convenience to San Miguel, where I stay on Cozumel. But it is more than just a muddy hole with alligators patrolling the entrance. It is a fascinating study of geology, biology and hydrology. Every passage of this cave has its own personality, it seems.

The picture above was taken at about 60' underwater, about 1500-2000 feet from the main entrance. Brad Reynolds used a Nikon D-70 with twin Ikelite Substrobe 400's to light the foreground. If you look closely you'll see that a 3rd Substrobe 400 is strapped between my tanks and illuminates more depth of the cave... also making my fins stand out to look like I have a blue tail. My own camera which you can see in the picture (a Canon 300D with two Sea&Sea YS-90's) was malfunctioning that day; I later discovered the problem was a flooded connector which shorted out the TTL flash adapter card. This problem alone took me about 2 months and 30 dives to figure out.

If you're a certified Cave Diver and are going to be in Cozumel during the winter months October '07 thru January '08, drop me a message.. Hot-doggers take note: I'm more interested in safety and good planning than I am in extreme distances, longest bottom time or unwarranted risks.

Cheers! Safe diving to you...
--Alexander