New guidebook maps out the bottom of the Illes Medes seafloor

Torroella de Montgrí (ACN).- Those wanting to better know the seafloor of Illes Medes and the coast of L’Estartit and L’Escala now have a new tool. Andreu Llamas and Pepi Cáceres are biologists who have been working for over 25 years. Since 2004, they have been taking photographs and making cartographic drawings of the ocean floor which have helped them to develop an Underwater Guide to the area of Illes Medes and the coast of Montgrí. The publication grew out of the scuba divers’ objective to better know the area and to give advice to other divers about the best ways to dive. The two biologists are also working on similar guides along the coast of Begur and Sant Feliu de Guíxols as well as another one from Blanes to Tossa de Mar.

The guide allows scuba divers to explore the sea of one of the most preferred diving locations for scuba divers around the world for its natural life and geological richness, the Illes Medes. With the guide, they can get a preview of the area before diving. Six years ago, Andreu Llamas and Pepi Cáceres started diving in this zone, taking photographs of marine habitats, caves, sunken ships and other places, mapping them into their guide so that other scuba divers can visit them without getting lost.

Apart from hundreds of unedited photos, the guidebook also includes cartographic maps and illustrated drawings of the most important spots in the area. It also includes recommended routes for scuba divers, taking into account the levels of visibility of each place as well as its average sea currents. “The objective is to make diving easier, before and after the dive”, said the author of the book. He added that the guide book is meant to aid scuba divers before getting into the water by giving them an idea about the sea floor that they wish to explore.

The editing of the guide book was “very artisanal”, said the publications’ creators, as they took all of the photographs, designed the maps, and even created their own publishing company to put out more guides in the future.

After their previous, more generic guides on the Costa Brava (1997), the Barcelona and Tarragona Coasts (2000) and the Balearic Islands (2003), they are now setting their sights on more specific places. According to Llamas, this month another one of their guides will come out on the coast between Begur and Sant Feliu de Guíxols. They have also begun working on a guide for the coast of La Selva (Blanes, Lloret de Mar and Tossa de Mar). As for future projects, they hope to dedicate another guide book to the coast of Cap de Creus.

The divers’ guidebooks for Illes Medes and the Montgrí (L’Estartit and L’Escala) coasts are now on sale at most diving centres, and they will soon be sold in bookstores for 27 euros under the publishing name Anthias.

The authors have put out 4,000 copies in four different languages (Spanish, Catalan, English and French) and trust that the guide will not just be for those new to scuba diving, but also for more experienced divers. “The guide includes a more updated approach to the sea bottom of this area”, said Llamas.

Llamas also touched on an example from the book, photographs of a sunken ship taken at 45 metres- named Marmoler- that many scuba divers claim has bad visibility, but according to Llamas, it can be seen clearly on a day with the appropriate climatic conditions.