One way to beat the heat in Santa Rosa, New Mexico is to take to the waters and explore one of their many natural lakes, but the city’s biggest and most well-known water attraction would have to be the Blue Hole. Having witnessed it myself, I’ll provide you with the non-scuba divers skinny to the Blue Hole. At the time of my arrival they were in the middle of a month-long cleaning project so I didn’t catch anyone splashing in the waters, but I’m told more people flock to the Blue Hole to go beneath than one can imagine. My daring companions who didn’t want to come all the way to the Blue Hole for nothing asked if they could at least dive in once or twice and swim across to get a feel for the Blue Hole’s chilly temperature in the blazing New Mex heat despite the 20 plus people around working hard at finishing their task. At this point I’m waiting to hear a giant booming “NO” from the woman overseeing the cleaning operation, but she tells the boys of our request and surely my pals have their way. The crane operator pulls out the equipment and within a matter of minutes my three amigas are swimming around at the top of the Blue Hole water.
So what really makes the pond worth visiting for real divers? Good question.
For starters the bell-shaped pool is said to be a geological phenomenon. It is 80 feet deep with impressive clarity (visibility 80′ when undisturbed) and a constant water temperature of 64 degrees. Other fast facts for curious divers include; 3,000 galloon flow per minute; water recycles every six hours, 4,600′ above sea level with the bottom equivalent of 100′ of depth in the ocean. There are also two training platforms at 20 and 25 feet. Additional info including directions to the location can be found here.
If you’re anything like myself and completely allergic to scuba equipment and what lies beneath or a family vacationing I suggest sticking to the lake nearby. No clue what the water temperature is, but it’s a whole heck of a lot cooler than standing on the lake shore. I promise – plus there’s a water slide, diving board, and paddle boats.