Читать книгу Into the Abyss. Diving to Adventure in the Liquid World онлайн

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A gnawing fear gripped me as I moved over to the edge. If we lingered just a few more minutes the down-currents would sweep us off the Pinnacle and drag us down into the depths - with little chance of breaking free of its grasp. To lose control here in the face of the huge natural forces at work would mean probable death.

Warily I kicked my fins and let the still gentle current sweep me effortlessly and intoxicatingly over towards the sheer cliffs. I grabbed hold of any rocky handholds along the way that allowed me some semblance of control over my flight – finally anchoring myself with a handhold a few feet before the very edge itself. The current immediately swung my body round so that my feet were ahead of me, pointing towards the edge - and the abyss. The monster was trying to snare me and lure me to the point of no return – from where I could not escape its grasp.

Ducking into a small hollow behind a rock ledge at the very edge, I found some shelter from the current. Gingerly, flat on our chests, in the lee of the outcrop, Dave and I moved out and took hold of the smoothed edge of the Pinnacle itself and peered down the sheer cliff face. We could see for perhaps 50 feet down the vertical walls. Beyond, the walls merged into the pure black chasm beneath us