Ben's Cave

Ben’s Cave


BEN’S CAVE: It’s not one of the better known facts about Grand Bahama, but the land areas are actually riddled with underwater caves which extend for miles. One tends to think more of Cozumel or Cancun with their extensive cenotes and cavern system when looking at caving adventures. The land area is composed of rock which resembles a huge sponge more than anything else. The caves originating on land extend well out to the ocean, and in places you can find the exits offshore. Ben’s Cave is so named for it’s discoverer, Ben Rose, who was one of the original dive staff for UNEXSO back in the 60’s. Ben is still around running a bone fishing camp on the island. The cave site is now a national park and there is a $5.00 fee to access it. You must be accompanied by an authorized dive instructor if you wish to dive the cave itself, and currently you need to arrange this dive ahead of time. The dive had been cut out for a couple of years and was just reopened last year. To get to the cave entrance is about a 100 yard walk carrying your gear and then down a tight spiral staircase to the water. Once at the water, there is ample room to don gear and slip over the rocks to get in. The clarity of the water is immediately evident as soon as you see the surface

Once you enter the water and look back at the entrance, you truly can see how clear the water is and how deeply the sunlight penetrates even from the comparatively small opening. To float on the surface and look down as the sunlight disappears into the depths and obvious passageways is one of the most beautiful sights you’ll ever see in diving.









		Diving Ben’s Cave is ideal for the novice as there is never a point at which you cannot reach the surface easily even though you do get back in the main cavern room far enough to loose sight of the surface with just a dim glow to indicate the way back. While you will see the smaller cave passages leading off the main area, you are not allowed to enter these areas for your own safety.

To venture deeper is obviously the realm of the experienced trained cave diver. Cristina Zenato is on the UNEXSO staff (Sometimes I think she runs the whole place) and she is a Master Cave Instructor who oversees the cave system. She spends much of her free time exploring all the abundant cave system of Grand Bahama. You might remember that I do not use flash on any of these photos. They are all shot with available light or the flashlights the divers carried. Remember also, as with all protected cave areas, DON’T TOUCH! and no souvenirs!

You can see the spongy limestone where the water from the surface percolates down and on the walls you can see the changes in strata caused as water levels changed in the past. Another indication of past water levels is the presence of fossil conch shells embedded up close to the ceiling on the walls.

UNEXSO Theos Seastar Sharks Dolphins

Reef Invaders