Bermuda Bell Diving
By Paul Scott Pike

Take a glass and turn it upside down. Now submerge it in a bowl of water, trapping the air inside. That's the principle behind bell diving, a Bermuda tradition. Want to try it? It's easy.

Next time you're in the islands, stop by Bermuda Bell Diving in Flatts Village. The Captain will take you out on the Cameron, a 40-ft. Admiral's launch, to a shallow ocean site. You simply put on a helmet and step down a ladder to the ocean floor. The helmets are full of air and quite spacious.

Bell diving allows anyone — even folks who don't swim — to experience the dazzling world beneath the waves. You'll see all sorts of magnificent coral formations and fish in a rainbow of colours. Be on the lookout for Theodore. The hogfish will swim right up to you and suck a mussel from your fingers. Heidi, a tame angelfish, will delight you by swimming through a hoop.

Bell diving is easy and fun, an exciting way to discover the wonders hidden just below the ocean's surface. In the 1930s, Dr. William Beebe was one of the first to promote the practice in Bermuda. Dr. Beebe, who explored the ocean all over the world, considered Bermuda to be the most interesting, exciting place to dive. He wrote several books describing his adventures.

Bell diving enjoys a remarkable history. As far back as 333 B.C., Alexander the Great used a diving bell to maneuver underwater during the siege of Tyre.

The earliest diving suits employed the concept of trapping air in a bell. Divers pulled a sort of barrel over their heads and upper bodies. The barrel was sealed with leather flaps and had a glass viewing plate. A dive mate above water manually pumped oxygen through a tube to the barrel below.

The late 1700s saw the advent of metal helmets and flexible suits. In 1819 Augustus Siebe designed a diving suit that consisted of a brass helmet affixed to a jacket that covered the diver to the waist. A pump on a boat sent compressed air to the helmet through a hose. Heavy boots kept the diver upright. Divers used the suits for years to salvage sunken ships, such as the Royal George, off Spithead, England, in 1839.

The suit was confining and awkward to use, though. Soon designers modified Siebe's concepts, eliminating leaded shoes and manually operated pumps.

Today, high-tech helmets and advanced communications equipment make bell diving the safest, most efficient way to work underwater at medium depths for long periods. What's more, bell diving no longer is just for salvage and dock repairs. It's a great way to have fun!

You can reach Bermuda Bell Diving at 441-535-8707. To learn more about the tradition, check out the exhibit at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute. Click here for more information.

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