The information on this page is intended only to illustrate that the logistics for diving this underwater cave are substantial and beyond most divers’ capabilities. This is not a guide or checklist, nor is it intended to provide specific information about how to dive Goodenough Springs.
To start, one has to get to the entrance of the cave in order to swim into it. In a place like Florida, you can often back your van up to within 10-50 yards of the water, set up your kit on the back of the van then walk to the water with your kit strapped to your back and fins in your hand. To dive Goodenough Springs, you first need to get to Del Rio, Texas.
Even if you live in Texas, to Del Rio from San Antonio is 156 miles, 2 hrs 43 min by car; from Austin, 234 miles and 4:19; from Houston: 351 miles, 5:47; from El Paso or Dallas: 424 miles, 6:42. So, it’s not a convenient place to get to. These distances impact divers’ ability to deal with emergencies, such as a hyperbaric injury. How far to the nearest chamber? How much time to get there? And once you get to Del Rio, you will need a boat… a reliable boat that can be used for this kind of heavy-duty diving.
If you get to Del Rio and have a boat, you need to fill it with every single tank that you will need for your dives. How many tanks will you need? Are you a trimix cave diver with experience of diving below 200 feet? Then you’ll know the answer to that question. 
You’ll need tanks with air, tanks with nitrox, tanks with various mixtures of trimix, a couple of tanks of pure O2 (for deco and for emergencies) and tanks with argon (in the cool months, for your drysuit). Factor in, of course, how many dives you’ll be doing, and how many divers are involved. You’ll need all the redundant cave diving regulators, lights, lines, and miscellaneous equipment, along with spares and repair kits.
Suddenly, the boat needs to be a lot bigger. It will require more power (if you don’t want to spend 75% of the day getting there and back), and a lot of fuel. Will it have a cover so you don’t bake in the sun? Will you have radios, first aid kits, and other emergency equipment?
In the past, there have been a few marinas where some of the above can be procured, but in 2022 the number of open marinas is down to one. Also, with the lake level so far down (August 2022), just getting a boat into the water (and out again) is a major operation, and may not even be possible. (In August 2022, the Park Service states: “Because of low water, [some] ramps [like Box Canyon] may be used only for launching small, lightweight craft that can be carried to the launch point, like kayaks and canoes.”) If you’re lucky and the lake level is higher, that just means you have a deeper dive ahead of you. At normal conservation levels, the entrance to the cave is at 166 ffw.
Ok, so, now you’re in Del Rio, you’ve got a boat and all your tanks and equipment are loaded, where do you go? There are no signs directing you there. Yes, there’s information about a buoy, but when you’re bobbing up and down by one buoy, it’s very hard to see the next one. You’ll need GPS and a latitude/longitude to get you close. The journey to get there is, at best, about 20 minutes in good weather, in a fast boat from Box Canyon… but if you don’t put in at Box Canyon? if you don’t have a fast boat? If the weather is against you? You may be spending an hour or longer — one-way — just to get to the general area.
If you drift across the international boundary — in the middle of the lake — that makes you no longer eligible for emergency services. It’s likely there will be no cell service, plus, emergent shorelines may restrict VHF radio transmissions. Boaters that may approach you may only speak Spanish. Border patrol will sometimes want to board your boat and check things out. What do you do if they want to look inside a tank?
So, you’ve managed all the above and you’re in the area, but where is the cave? The GSEP — through great effort and expense — has put in and maintained a buoy system that is anchored near the entrance to the cave. But is it still there? Several times since the exploration began around 1995, the buoy system has simply collapsed or disappeared. If it isn’t there, how do you find the cave entrance? If you’re very lucky and the conditions in both the cave and on the lake are right, then you might see a boil on the surface of the water. But you have to follow that boil to 100+ feet in very murky water, and you may not find the entrance on the first…. or fifth… attempt, so the valuable daylight is rapidly disappearing, and you’re using up your valuable gas supply just finding it.
Congratulations, you’ve got all the equipment you need and you’re on-site, and you’ve got the boat tied on to the buoy. The diving is about to begin but you need a plan. How much bottom time will you have? Are you prepared for the long deco? Do you need to place deco bottles? Do you have in-water support or are you just winging it? Is the lake water cold? Oh, and take along needle-nose pliers in case you impale yourself on the many fishing hooks found in the area.
Finally, you get to the warning sign at the entrance to the cave and you try to swim into it… but the flow of water is too great. So you grab on to the line and pull yourself in. Your regulator starts free-flowing from the flow pressing the purge button. You turn your head to check on your buddy, and your facemask is almost pulled off your face. Your mask is now half full of water. Can you clear it but only use one hand? And stop your regulator from being pulled from your mouth. If you use two hands, you’ll be blown out of the cave. And you’ve only gone a few feet into the cave, pulling on a line. And you’re not even yet fully into the main room. The Fire Hydrant Tunnel is worse… much worse.
At this point, you’ve done all the easy stuff. Now it gets hard.
| We’re acutely aware that many modern rebreathers might make diving at GE much less difficult at depth, yet they can be cumbersome (large diameter corrugated hoses in that flow?) and the difficulties and dangers still remain. For example, we’ve seen scrubbers overheating due to the divers’ exertion against the flow. The high flow could cause water to enter the loop. Can you bailout in those high flow conditions? |
Below is a short compilation of links to resources that may or may not be helpful. This information may be out of date. We leave it here more as a reminder of what we need to think about — hotels? ice for ice chests? — and what needs to be done before leaving home. We also leave it here in fond remembrance of past trips we’ve made to the cave. If it helps you, then so much the better but don’t rely on it.
NOTE: Some of the information below is out-of-date and/or inaccurate. As time permits, this information will be corrected.
WARNING: Goodenough Springs is one of the most dangerous underwater caves in the world. No amount of training and experience can prepare you for this cave. Only through careful incremental steps of introduction to the cave and its environment can dives be conducted safely. You and you alone are responsible for the result of any action you take with the information provided on the website.
It cannot be overstated: do not rely on any information below… do your own Internet searches, call way ahead and confirm prices and availability for any service, for the dates you have in mind.
Link: Amistad National Recreation Area
Link: Topographic maps of the area, 29°32′ N, 101°15′ W
Link: Lake Amistad Lake Level
Link: Lake Amistad Park Info
Link: Amistad Current Conditions
Check-in with the National Park Service rangers at 830-775-7492. The spring is located near Buoy 18. You may not find it unless you or your buddy have been there before. At normal lake levels, the cave opening is at around 140-150 feet. This is a very advanced, deep cave dive. From Diablo East Marina, it’s a 30- to 90-minute boat ride to get there (depending on the speed of your boat, of course), so take 2 sets of doubles and stages, food and water for the whole day, warm and waterproof clothes if it’s below 70°F outside. If you leave from Box Canyon, it’s 30-40 minutes, but the drive to get air fills from Box Canyon is at least 25 minutes each way. (Photo of original springs.)
Lodging (not verified since 2004):
- Days Inn
- Ramada Inn: 830 775 1511 Nicest in town, full restaurant and bar
- Holiday Inn Express: 830 775 8061 Newest, typical accommodations
- Howard Johnson La Siesta: 830 775 6323 Older, but just remodeled, social hour, breakfast, neat place
- Amistad Lake Resort: 800-775-8591 Located at the lake, out of town; restaurant and bar, good restaurant
Contact who may or may not have air fills: Del Rio Dive Club
Nearest chamber is in San Antonio (150 miles) 512-696-7293 … highly recommended any diver with questionable symptoms report to the closest ER.
A possible source for O2 and helium: Del Rio Welders Equipment, 2045 N Bedell Ave, Del Rio, TX 78840, (830) 775-2141
Remember, if using a boat, get a boat permit…
- $4 for a 1-day pass. Good for 24 hours from time of purchase; they may be purchased for multiple days.
- $10 for a 3-day pass. Good for 72 hours from time of purchase.
- $50 for an annual pass. Good for 12 months from the month purchased.
| Reference material used in select parts of this website: Gunnar Brune, Springs of Texas, Vol. 1 (Fort Worth: Branch-Smith, 1981). |