Mary's Place

Years ago, a site called Mary's Place adorned the pages of all dive magazines. While it's undeniably a beautiful dive, damage from divers negotiating its narrow fissures ultimately led to its closure. It's recently been reopened for a trial period, with cooperating resorts agreeing to limit diving to assigned times and requiring divers to preview a videotape of the site, listen to a lecture, and receive buoyancy instructions before making the dive. While years ago divers would exit at 115 feet for a spectacular view up the coral-encrusted walls, they now exit at 85 feet, and no picture-taking is allowed in the fissure. Researchers from Texas A&M are conducting an extensive study to help determine the impact of sport diving on the area.