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Wonder
Boiling Hole in Lake Catherine
In short
Blue holes – underwater passages between lakes and sea – exist on several Caicos Islands. One of the best explored thus far is the Boiling Hole in Lake Catherine, West Caicos.
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GPS coordinates
Location, address
Length
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Map of the site
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In detail
West Caicos is an uninhabited island with a large lake – Lake Catherine – located in its central part. Lake is a protected natural area, with many wading birds, flamingos, and ducks living in it.
This shallow (1 – 2 m) saltwater lake is connected to the depths of the nearby sea. As the tides in the sea rise up and down, the level of the water in the lake also rises up and down – with some delay.
Seawater enters the lake through cave mouths on the lake bed – blue holes. When water enters the lake, it looks like it is boiling above the cave’s mouth. There are several such blue holes in Lake Catherine, but none by far is that large as Boiling Hole.
It might seem tempting to dive in this cave and go through it, towards the sea. This is though very dangerous due to very strong currents – diver might get stuck in a narrow place and there would be no way to get him out. If some daredevils would make it – this would require very exact timing and fast action.
Caicos Cave Project, led by Mark Parrish, in 2000 made many dives in the Boiling Hole. Divers managed to get 206 m far in it until the passage became too narrow.
References
- Amphibious Adventures. West Caicos.
Linked articles
Wonders of Turks and Caicos
These small tropical islands are overseas territories of the United Kingdom.
Islands are not very rich in landmarks. Most interesting are the caves, including underwater caves.
Caves
Every year there are reported exciting discoveries of new caves and discoveries of new qualities such as cave paintings in the ones known before. But there still is a feeling that our knowledge covers just a small part of all these monuments of nature.
Though, those which are known to us, offer a surprising diversity of unusual features and impressive sights.
Wonders of Caribbean
The Caribbean is a unique group of islands. These islands are somewhat similar – tropical islands surrounded by the blue Caribbean sea. At the same time, they are very diverse – from enormous Cuba to minuscule Saba, from dry Bonaire to jungle-covered mountains of Trinidad, and from the flat Bahamas to mountainous Dominica.
Recommended books
Fodor’s In Focus Turks & Caicos Islands
Written by locals, Fodor’s travel guides have been offering expert advice for all tastes and budgets for 80 years.
Turks & Caicos Dive Map & Reef Creatures Guide
Perfect for divers, snorkelers, and nature lovers! Side One is a mini-map of the Turk Islands and the Caicos Islands, with dive sites named and located. Side Two is a fish identification guide with nearly 100 species illustrated.
