Divers Break Record for Longest Cave Passage
Jarrod Jablonski and Casey McKinlay dropped into a small cave entrance called Turner Sink on the afternoon of December 15 and dove to a depth of some 300 feet (91 meters).
They then swam through 7 miles (11.25 kilometers) of underground freshwater cave—enjoying what McKinlay called "an incredible ride"—before resurfacing the morning of the 16th at Wakulla Springs State Park near Tallahassee, Florida.
It took the pair over 6 hours to complete the two-entrance cave traverse, and more than 14 more to gradually decompress before surfacing.
But they did more than set a record. Working for the Woodville Karst Plain Project, the divers swam for the first time through the state's Wakulla Springs and Leon Sinks cave systems. Scientists had already proven that the caves were connected earlier this year.
