Grand Cayman Grotto FLUID MAGIC
A dazzling experience at one of the Caribbean’s top dive destinations
Text by Carolyn Flynn and Jim Hellemn Photographs by Jim Hellemn
got our hearts pounding, but we didn’t care! It was exhilarating to be swept into this Grand Cayman dive, and site, that wasted exactly no time at all delivering on its claim as one of the island’s premiere underwater attractions. We were in the Devil’s Grotto, a
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complex of caves that honeycomb the rock here and which is a ‘must do’ dive for any diver or snorkeler vacationing on this SCUBA-mad island, given the site’s easy access,
Magazine
e’re not sure if it was the solid wall of silversides or the school of tarpon chasing them that
shallow and clear waters, healthy reef and out-of-the-ordinary marine life activity. The caveat is that this amazing
spectacle is not on show all year round. Late June through early August is generally when this shallow network of caves at Devil’s Grotto, and adjacent Eden Rock, fill with millions of the tiny fish called silversides. It’s thought they aggregate for protection, but the safety in numbers game backfires here. Indeed, their numbers attract predators that feast on them for the several weeks they are present. Natural selection in action! The predators are schools of tarpon
The Devil’s
Grotto affords opportunity aplenty for creative
photographers
that hang around the outside of the caves in groups, like teenagers at a mall. Several species of jacks and snappers join the crowd, and groupers show up too though they keep their distance. During a typical day these big fish
sweep through the caves in groups of a dozen or more, feasting on the countless baitfish in a darkness that offers little protection. For divers it’s like being in the movie. As you glide along wide swim-throughs you’re surrounded by the mass of tiny fish that shape shift in magical unison hoping their deception will hoodwink the voracious predators, but it does not.
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