Olave
wrote the follow of an adventure while in Bermuda (1930)
I had
the luck to be allowed to walk down on the bottom of the sea. This
sounds rather odd, but actually I went down in a diving helmet, which
was one of the most exciting things I have ever done.
This happened at the Aquarium,
which is a world-famous one, on the edge of Harington Sound.
I went in my bathing dress and
dived into the water and then stood at the edge of the bank whilst some
men put the helmet over my head. It rested on my shoulders, and then
they screwed in the window in front of my face, and attached. the
air-pipes and made all secure and safe for me. Then I just walked away,
and down into the deeper water, breathing ordinarily, and the air that I
had breathed and finished with went out at the top of the helmet through
one tube, and other fresh air was being pumped in through another tube,
so that I had a constant supply of nice clean oxygen to keep me going!
It was simply fascinating. I walked on and on, over the rough surface of
pebbles and rocks and coral ridges, my feet swishing through sea-weed,
and with fishes darting hither and thither all round me.
One came flipping up and looked
in at my face through my window, and then darted away between my fingers
as I put up my hand to try to catch him.
There was a wonderful
greenish-bluish light as one walked down at that depth, thick and
opaque, and I could see the rubber air-tube which was attached to the
helmet disappearing away into nothingness, which made one feel miles
away from anywhere, and absolutely lost!
I loved it, and though to a
certain extent it was rather eerie walking about at the bottom of the
sea, I felt that I wanted to stay and go on and on, and I was quite
sorry to have to turn round and follow my pipe back to the surface.
So I have a lot to thank Bermuda
for.
From "Travelogues" by Olave Baden-Powell