Devil's Den - Scuba Diving in Florida's Subterranean Oasis
- Dara
- Feb 3
- 7 min read
Updated: 45 minutes ago
When most people think of scuba diving, images of brightly colored reefs and friendly tropical fish swimming in warm salty waters come to mind. That is not Devil's Den.
Location
Located in central Florida, about 45 minutes south of Gainesville, and 90 minutes northwest of Orlando, Devil's Den Prehistoric Spring is a unique scuba dive destination - a freshwater sinkhole that is home to one of the most beautiful caves on earth.
Devil's Den Site Details
The entrance to Devil's Den looks more like what you’d find at a horse ranch than at a world class underwater cave.
There are pathways that lead right up to the opening of the sinkhole, so as soon as you set foot on the property you can get your first glimpse of this natural wonder by peering in from up top.
Devil's Den is actually an underwater river fed by a geothermal spring, so the water here remains around 72°F (22°C) year round. The warmth of the water creates steam that rises up from the opening on cold days, and that’s actually how this spot got its name - the early settlers of central Florida saw this steam rising up from the cave's opening, suggesting an underground portal to hell - hence, Devil’s Den.
Scuba Logistics
Devil's Den is open to snorkelers and scuba divers, but open swimming is not permitted. Snorkelers do have to make reservations in advance, but scuba divers do not. Devil's Den does have a very comprehensive website with information on both options. I'll be focusing just on the details for diving, since that's how I experienced the cave.
There are basic facilities on site, including restrooms with showers and a gift and rental shop for any snorkel or scuba gear needs. They do also offer overnight accommodations - a few rental cabins and a campground. The shop does sell some light snacks and drinks, but if you're planning on spending the whole day here, or camping overnight, definitely bring your own food, as the surrounding area is pretty rural.
(L) Restroom facilities, (C) Inside the rental shop, & (R) Outside of rental shop
You do have to be at least open water certified to dive here, and you must have a buddy to dive with. No solo dives are permitted. As of January 2025, scuba admission is $48, and the full rental gear bundle (mask, snorkel, fins, booties, regulator, BCD, tank, wetsuit, weights & LED light) is $60. You can of course just rent what you need, I rented just a tank and weights. They do not currently have nitrox capability, although for this site you really don't need it anyway. You do definitely need an underwater light though, as even during the day the cavern gets very dark in its most secluded nooks. To up the creepy factor, they do offer night dives as well, although these are by appointment only. In my opinion a night dive here isn't really worth it. The daytime experience is quite similar - it does get pretty dark underwater, even in the middle of the day!
Once you've rented what you need and are ready to get geared up, there are plenty of covered picnic tables close by to make your home base for the day, complete with multiple tank stands.
The Dive
The entrance to Devil’s Den is a short walk from the picnic tables - everything on site here is pretty compact. You don’t enter through the sinkhole itself, rather through this slightly janky looking tunnel.
The first staircase heading down into the depths is carved into the rock - its very steep, uneven, and always wet - so be very careful when heading down with all your heavy dive gear. The clearance is also quite low, so watch your head!
As you reach the bottom and turn the slight corner, the underground pool slowly reveals itself. At the landing, you have full view of this magnificent natural freshwater spring, complete with the moss from the surface dripping in from the opening above, bathed in sunlight. As you're making your way down, don't forget to breathe for a moment and take it all in. Can you believe this place even exists?
The second stairway is metal, and leads down to the submerged main platform, where you put on your mask and fins and get on it! You can’t leave anything on the stairs or platform, so whether you’re diving or snorkeling, anything you take down here has to go in the water with you. As I mentioned, the water here is 72°F year round, which is a bit chilly for diving. I was in a 3mm wetsuit and did OK, but I’d recommend a 5 mm for better comfort. And of course, being a natural spring, the water here is crystal clear. You will still likely see some sediment floating around in the water though, but that comes from divers accidentally stirring up sediment - the water itself is pristine. If you can, get into the water as soon as they open in the morning. That will give you the best chance at having that beautiful crystal clear experience.
At the surface, the cavern is maybe 35 feet (10.5 meters) to the ceiling, and about 120 feet (36.5 meters) across, but underwater things change - the cavern has an inverted mushroom shape as you descend - it eventually expands to about 200 feet (61 meters) in diameter.
One thing I haven't mentioned yet is marine life - are there any fish in Devil’s Den? Yes, there are some, but not a ton and they’re not all that interesting - the geology here is the main draw and attraction, not the marine life.
You come to Devil's Den for the cave experience - to float through an underwater geological playground. The geology here really is incredible. Caves such as this one were originally formed over time when rain water carved through the limestone rock. These rocks you glide amongst while you dive here, some of them date back 33 million years. This is a true prehistoric wonderland - ancient fossils and bones have been found here, some dating back to Pleistocene age. Several thousand year old human remains have been found here as well. Some of the fossils originally found in the cave are housed at The University of Florida's Museum of Natural History, so you can go and see them, but make sure you don’t do any of your own underwater archeological projects while you’re diving here - there is no removing of any rocks or fossils, so if you spot anything interesting, leave it where it is. As we divers say, take only photos, leave only bubbles.
It’s very important to point out that although I’ve been using the word "cave" to describe this dive site, there are actually very clear delineations between cave and cavern diving. What we are doing here is technically cavern, not cave diving. What’s the high level difference? In cavern diving, you can always look around to find the natural sunlight - you’re never submerged in complete and total darkness. When you dive Devil's Den, you are in an overhead environment, where you certainly can bump your head on rocks if not careful, and it does get quite dark in the cavern - as I mentioned earlier, a flashlight is a must - but when you're down here you're always able to spot the ambient light beaming in, and that’s the difference. Cave diving requires specialized gear and intense, meticulous training. Entering a cave without that knowledge is incredibly dangerous, and even well trained people have lost their lives in caves. Thankfully, you’ll always know when you’re entering formal cave territory in Florida as the entrances are marked by the infamous Grim Reaper sign. Seriously. Never enter a cave without training.
That said, my favorite parts of this dive are the tight squeezes in the more restricted passageways. The narrow swim-throughs are optional, you can always stay in the more open parts of the cavern, but I think these are so much fun! They can get dark in the middle, but there’s always ambient light at the entrance and the exit, so you’ll never lose your bearings.
If you’re not sure if diving in overhead environments is something you want to pursue, Devil’s Den is really a great site to get some introductory experience, without having to invest a lot of money in formal cave training.
What about depth? How deep is this site? Despite its "portal to hell roots," the dive itself is not actually all that deep. The maximum depth of this site is only about 54 feet (16.5 meters), and my own personal max depth here was 46 feet (14 meters) - so despite how intimidating some of these swim throughs may look, everything here is relatively shallow.
My group of three divers did two dives here, the first one was 39 minutes and the second one 45. If you’re good on air consumption you can spend a lot longer down here, although I think we explored the whole area pretty thoroughly. In between dives I checked out the rest of the property a bit. It’s not very big, but there is cute pond here, which you can also scuba dive in, although I’m not sure why you would.
Last thing of importance to note is that there are cats on the property. All the best dive sites always have the cats! I consider them a good luck charm - cats on site always mean the dives will be puuurfect! (sorry I know that was terrible...)
Devil’s Den is a special place. It's not every day you get a chance to scuba dive in a site surrounded by ancient mystique. Well worth the trip to central Florida.
The Video:
If you want to see more of the dive site, be sure to check out the video!