{"id":9112,"date":"2024-04-24T15:00:23","date_gmt":"2024-04-24T13:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relaxedcuracao.com\/en\/?p=9112"},"modified":"2024-05-02T12:54:11","modified_gmt":"2024-05-02T10:54:11","slug":"substation-curacao","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relaxedcuracao.com\/en\/snorkeling-diving\/substation-curacao\/","title":{"rendered":"Into the depths by Substation submarine"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Paula<\/span><\/div>

H<\/span>ave you ever dreamed of diving with a submarine and exploring the wonders of the deep sea? If so, then the rush you’ll get with Substation Curacao<\/a> is just what you need!<\/p>\n

Sea Aquarium, Dolphin Academy and Substation<\/h3>\n

Just a stone’s throw from Mambo Beach, you will find a hidden gem in the south-east of the island. A small bridge leads to a small island world. Here you\u2019ll find a real treasure trove for dolphin and underwater enthusiasts. While you can marvel at sharks and other marine life up close in the Curacao Sea Aquarium, you can also swim with dolphins in their natural habitat or admire the colorful underwater life at a depth of about 15 meters (Curacao Ocean Lens<\/a>). This already is an absolutely unforgettable day trip for the whole family.<\/p>\n

Just a few meters further on, things really get exciting! At the outermost tip of the small island (called Bapor Kibr\u00e1), you’ll find one of the most spectacular attractions in the Caribbean: the deep-sea research submarine Curasub. Their office and staring point for the offered underwater experiences can be found in a small yellow house – Curacao\ud83d\ude09 Once built for purely scientific purposes and used in numerous missions far beyond Curacao, the submarine can now be booked by tourists as an adrenaline rush!<\/p>\n

\"The

Yellow office of Substation Curacao<\/p><\/div>\n

How one gift became two<\/h3>\n

This unique experience was supposed to be a gift for our daughter Paula, as her long-awaited exchange to the USA could not take place due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As she has been interested in marine biology for years (and is now studying biology), it seemed like an expensive but appropriate compensation.<\/p>\n

So we went into the aforementioned yellow house. We were greeted with a friendly welcome right away and were even offered something to drink. In the best of moods and after a detailed consultation, we decided on the “big package”. After all, something like this is and remains a “once in a lifetime” event.<\/p>\n

After an introduction to the Curasub project and a comprehensive safety briefing, the moment when we were finally due to set off drew ever closer. And then, out of the blue, Tico (our amazing instructor) told us that it would probably be boring for Paula alone underwater. As we were the only ones interested during the pandemic (and generally some of the few guests on the island), we were given a really great offer for a second place, which we couldn’t refuse.<\/p>\n

\"Briefing

Briefing by Substation Curacao<\/p><\/div>\n

So, which of us was going to get to take the free spot? Maike wasn’t too keen on the idea, and our older daughter didn’t have her glasses with her, so she wouldn’t have been able to see anything. Well, what can I say? I was lucky!<\/p>\n

Permanent radio contact<\/h3>\n

Safety first! Throughout the dive, safety is monitored by constant radio contact with the team on shore. 100% redundancy in the battery supply, as well as the air and oxygen supply, plus air scrubbers in the cabin to remove carbon dioxide (CO2), means the submarine can stay safely underwater for up to 96 hours.<\/p>\n

The pressure thing<\/h3>\n

As the scuba divers among you know, the ambient pressure rises by 1 bar for every 10 meters you descend. This means that enormous forces are acting on the submarine, but don’t worry! You don’t notice any of this. There is no pressure equalization. There is constant atmospheric pressure inside, so you can breathe normally and it feels exactly the same as on the surface. And there’s no creaking, like in the famous Hollywood blockbusters. The opposite is true, though! It’s really, really quiet. You can hear the drive from time to time, but that’s it.<\/p>\n

\"Painted

Painted Styrofoam cups that are taken underwater<\/p><\/div>\n

As you can see from the photos, we had been given a painting task before the start of our adventure. We were supposed to paint polystyrene drinking cups, which we took on the journey in a net attached to the outside of the submarine. You can imagine what happened to the cups at a depth of 250 meters, can’t you? Keyword: shot glass ;-<\/p>\n

And the light was gone<\/h3>\n

For the first few minutes, we drove along the reef and were absolutely blown away by the beautiful Caribbean underwater world. The thick and large glass dome made this an incredible experience. It was also incredible because the glass acts like a magnifying glass and makes everything appear much bigger than it actually is.<\/p>\n

\"Paula

Paula and Stefan look at the diver from inside the submarine<\/p><\/div>\n

We didn’t even notice that we were continuously descending deeper and deeper into the blue sea. The natural sunlight was so bright that it illuminated the underwater world for too long. But suddenly the colors faded and the water became darker and darker. At this moment, Tico briefly switched off the submarine’s headlights. And it became dark – really dark: black! That was the first moment when at least I thought, “Oops!”<\/p>\n

Journey to nowhere<\/h3>\n

Ok, I had no idea where we were or how deep we were. Compass and depth gauge, which we as divers always have with us: no chance. So we went further down and for the first time we registered the depth gauge in the submarine itself: 500 feet, 800 feet, 850 feet. Exciting!<\/p>\n

\"Depth

Depth indicator shows 821 feet in the Substation Curacao submarine<\/p><\/div>\n

The underwater world was no longer colorful and through the spotlight Tico showed us creatures we had never seen before. There were still some fish, but they were rare. It was an entirely different world.<\/p>\n

A note at this point: Tico kept us informed throughout the dive. Not too much and never intrusive. But not too little either, so we were always aware of what we were seeing. And he was constantly communicating with the ground station to give us our location. It was all very pleasant and professional.<\/p>\n

Garbage collector<\/h3>\n

Unfortunately, we humans “gift” the ocean with tons of garbage every day. Especially microplastics are a big problem. This will be the subject of a separate article, as we were already part of a “beach cleaning” session.<\/p>\n

We were very excited when Tico suddenly said to us under the water that we were going to bring the garbage that we had just seen to the surface. We watched as our guide used the research submarine’s grappling arms to skillfully collect the garbage into the basket on the bow.<\/p>\n

\"The

The Substation Curacao submarine in the shipyard<\/p><\/div>\n

Dolphins ahead<\/h3>\n

Shortly before we left, dolphins were spotted along our route. We kept a constant lookout for these fascinating and intelligent animals. Unfortunately, the school of dolphins did not do us the honor and we returned without a dolphin or shark sighting. This would have been the icing on the cake of an extremely interesting and entertaining submarine excursion.<\/p>\n

Instead, we visited a wreck on the way up and spent a long time looking at the corals, sponges, fish and the hustle and bustle around the wreck. So we had an “all inclusive” package with “Wreck Dive”, “Explorer Dive” and “Research Dive” (see below). Thank you Tico!!! It was unique, wonderful and you as a team gave us an unforgettable moment.<\/p>\n

Dive packages<\/h3>\n

There are three different packages<\/a> that differ in dive time, maximum depth and of course price:<\/p>\n