Sunday, December 28, 2008

Surf's Up...

When you have your heart set on a dive sometimes it just doesn't matter what the weather's doing. Jim had a yen to dive the KGH wreck this morning, so despite heavy seas and a really strong wind, off we went. As we'd expected, besides driving a very gentle current along, conditions below the surface, after yet another surf entry, were surprisingly good. It was a more than worthwhile trip, because the line was getting quite dirty, and right out on the last 100' or so, it was actually silted over, which might have confused a diver unfamiliar with the site.

Visibility, while only about 20' in the shallows, improved significantly to something like 40-50' at the wreck. The water seemed warmer than of late at about 36℉ (2℃). Several large, lazy Bass were present amongst the timbers of the wreck - and they seemed curious about their visitors - or perhaps just hungry.

Our exit was quite exciting. A squall was passing through just as we arrived back on shore. It's distinctly different to be bodysurfed about 6' at a time as you approach your exit, which was conducted on hands and knees..! Ah, the joys of Winter diving.

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Because it's there....

What do you say when people ask you, slightly incredulously, why on Earth are you diving at this time of year? Well, the answer quite simply is, because we can. A passerby suggested this morning that it's just a matter of 'getting wet'; and they were quite right. Some of us just enjoy the challenge of Winter diving. There's also the possibility of enjoying a unique encounter. Not that we did today, but that's irrelevant. Coping with surf entries and exits is enjoyable in itself. Most people have heard the old saw, "Train Hard, Fight Easy'. Well, in a diving context, 'practice regularly to dive safely' might be substituted. The statistics are very clear. The majority of incidents involve divers who don't have the opportunity to practice regularly.

My enjoyment is only slightly eroded by a persistent - and so far untraceable - leak in my drysuit. It's not enough to force me out of the water while it benefits from professional inspection and repair by the manufacturer, but it's certainly irritating. A fact which my dive buddies, who hear me grumble about it, will readily attest to. Oh well, I think I'll make it a New Year's resolution to send it away and address the problem. But how will I survive in its absence?

I should record my appreciation of the sacrifice others are making to be my dive buddies while I satisfy my strange obsession... I really do feel very grateful to them.

Friday, December 26, 2008

Cracking good dive...!

There's a brief time of year between ice free and frozen when the Lake can be entered with a minimum of effort by cracking light icing at the margins. Today was one of those rare days. With a brisk wind piling drift ice up on the breakwaters and making shore entry challenging, the decision was made to enter at KGH and swim out into the Lake. There were no great issues and navigation proved reasonably easy; the area around the outer breakwater is quite familiar. Visibility wasn't great, probably about 20 feet at best, but the dive was worthwhile.


Besides the car that lies south of the wall, a bicycle was found and a shoal of Lake Shad spotted close to the rocks. The water temperature was as close to freezing as it gets before it gets a little firmer.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Christmas visit to the Stacked Hulls...


When you've been busy with the Pumphouse Project and the water's likely to be pretty churned up, where do you go? Well, the answer today, bearing in mind possible access issues with snowy, slippery shore conditions, was to hit the Stacked Hulls.

Despite a heavy swell, courtesy of a brisk westerly wind, and visibility somewhere around 15-20', the swim was fun. The line remains intact and we cleaned it up a bit. The yellow colour really shows up well against the bottom, when it's not slimy and dirty..

Forty minutes out to the wrecks and back, in water just above freezing makes for a great Christmas afternoon treat. Let's hope that the Club's forthcoming New Year's Day dive will enjoy such excellent topsides weather.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

The Virgin Blogger...



After being in the Kingston area for more than a year, and after multiple invites from Mike, this is my first post on the Club Blog. I finally ran out of excuses, and have decided to stop procrastinating.... so here we go... and please, be gentle....
I just got back from a week of diving in Cuba, more precisely, Playa Pesquero in the Guardalavaca region. This was not my first time in this area, visiting the same resort back in 2005. I was able to get about 10 dives in during my stay there... as well as take some pretty interesting pictures of local sea life. Unfortunately because of the weather, we were unable to dive with very large groupers, which was the reason for my trip there. Cuba has been having very tumultuous weather lately, with a few hurricanes passing by the Holguin region. The resorts, local crops, and coral reefs have suffered severe damage from Hurricane Ike in November. One of our tour bus drivers paid 23 pesos for 5 lbs of sweet potatoes. $1.41 CAD for each CUC pesos. Bear in mind that the average Cuban salary is less than that per month....

Here is a pic of a lionfish, which we saw are quite the common site on most of our dives there. Giant crabs were usually found on most coral reef walls, mostly hidden in crevises.. A couple of Moray Eels, Puffer Fishes, and sea cucumbers made up the seascape as well. Our dives consisted of a deep dive at 9 A.M., max depth most mornings at about 115 ft @ 78 deg F. The next dive of the morning would be at about 80 ft after at least an hour of surface interval.
One piece of advice if you are contemplating a dive vacation to Cuba. If you can bring your own gear, DO IT. All rental gear usually available in Cuba belongs to the government. The gear seldom gets serviced, or gets serviced once there is a major failure. Tanks have no yearly viz done, and I could not see any hydrostat stamps on any of the tanks. The inside of my first stage is now coated with rusty dust particles, probably caused by the dive shop's compressor failure which happened the week prior to me arriving there. I would hate to see what the inside of their rental regulators look like.

Gotta go.. Have to finish warming up with some Cuban Rum , after my immersion today with Mike and Dianne on the Steam Museum Barge. Dive time 31 minutes, water temp 34 deg F... A bit colder than Cuba's 78 degrees last Saturday....

Friday, December 19, 2008

Diving's snow problem for us...

They said we were crazy - and they may well have been correct. Diving in a snowstorm, when the air temperature's down to -13℃ (9℉) is probably pushing the dive envelope, but when there's work to be done, why not? Adam, Jim and I braved the entry challenges (and more particularly, the exit ones) to get more data on the Pump House Pipeline today. Adam again 'scootered' out to the distant crib and took some more details of the pipeline structure and fittings; Jim and I concentrated on obtaining detailed measurements of one of the conical (perhaps better described as bell-shaped) connections.

Visibility was excellent - probably about 50'. The first few, snow-chilled feet of water were very close to the freezing point, but below that layer, the water remains a 'comfortable' 37℉ (4℃). Going back to exit challenges, consider this... Adam had to re-immerse himself briefly to create the conditions to unzip his drysuit. Everything wet froze almost instantly in the wind and low temperature land side. Jim was obliged to drive home in his suit, having failed to get out its frigid confines....

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Happy Birthday, Adam !


With a birthday in late December, you're not always guaranteed the conditions for a dive that satisfies; well not in Kingston, anyway. But today, Adam, Jim and I had a great dive in near perfect conditions. Adam, rigged for solo diving, took his scooter out all the way to the end of the Pump House Pipeline - some 2,400'. Jim and I swam out together to the first crib (about 1350') - counting the pipeline joints along the way. For both parties, it was an interesting experience testing our line of approach by probing for a pipeline some 6-8" down in the mud after a certain point. But it was all very worthwhile. Our understanding - and the feedback we're able to give the historians and engineers chronicling Kingston's early freshwater delivery system - is growing all the time.

For the records - air temperature today -2℃ (28℉) and the water temperature 37℉ (3℃). Visibility, as the water settles after recent storms, about 40' and improving.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Wow - what a shot !


This superb shot is one of the latest to be sent back from Honduras by our two reps down there just now. And in Cuba, Kevin is getting some diving in despite rain and the odd delay. Makes you wish you were there, doesn't it? Still the Lake is lovely just now - water temp was down to 35℉ today after all the snow....

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Colourful and cute...

Today's image from Honduras - courtesy of our traveling divers, Marc-Etienne and Donovan - is of a Scrawled Filefish. These creatures are quite commonplace and usually seen individually or in pairs. The electric blue stripes can be 'flashed' and change as the fish moves along.

M-E and Donovan are getting some great images, which will be amongst other shots shown at a Club Show 'n Tell in mid February.

Our VP, who is in Cuba right now and sending back occasional reports (between massages) , will also contribute to this evening. Sadly, his internet connection is not permitting the passage of pictures.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Not in Kansas anymore....

Nor in Lake Ontario for that matter..

Marc-Etienne and Donovan sent this picture - and others - taken on their first day down in Honduras at the start of their Winter break. The Blue Tang are swimming in water that's in the high 70s. Something to think about as we listen to the wind roar and watch the snow melt running to the drains...

More work on the pipeline...


Four of us defied stormy seas today to conduct further research on the Pump House pipeline. Visibility was surprisingly reasonable - at about 20'; more than sufficient to complete our tasks. Perhaps the greatest challenge was the one faced by one of our number whose mask had to be defrosted after leaving it in a cold garage overnight.

We are now refining our measurements on the pipe and making a specific record of joints and their natures. Simple tasks, but rewarding. It has to be said that there's no joy in fish watching just now. We saw nothing but Gobies today.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Chilly.... but worthwhile...

This afternoon's dive was out to the Marine Museum Barge - using the line laid earlier this year by other divers. Air temperatures around -9℃ (15℉) and gear still half wet from yesterday made suiting up a challenge, but eventually we hit the water. The viz isn't great just now, unclear why that is, but several large Bass were around in the shallows close to the start of the line. The barge itself was pretty deserted. Of course, with these air temperatures, getting undressed is a race to beat the freezing of the zipper - and temporary confinement. Ah - the fun of Winter diving...

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

One flange, two flange, three flange, more..?



Today's dive was another installment in the recently commenced project to support the investigation of the Kingston Pump House and its associated pipelines. The intention was to get some half decent imagery of the different joints on the pipeline and to look for any other interesting features. Well, having previously noted two different joint types, the first surprise was finding a third. Examples of each are shown. Another delightful discovery was what may be the missing union with the shore-side ducting. Just to the right of the severed end of the pipe that heads off into the Lake, a pipe opening was found protruding from the breakwater and pointing roughly towards the other section.

For the record - visibility was about 40' - less than the ideal conditions would have suggested, but the Lake was pretty disturbed yesterday. The water temperature is down to 39℉ (4℃).

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Piping Hot - NOT !





Despite heaving seas and blustery, freezing winds, three of us ventured into the Lake today to begin to answer some questions about the intake pipeline that used to serve Kingston's pump house on Ontario Street. This research is being undertaken for a group that previously restored the Phoebe and is now working on the historic pump house itself. Much is known about the pipeline, but the group are interested in confirming their understanding of the original plans and reports. Today's work focused on measuring the intervals at which the iron pipe (with a 2' diameter) used connecting flanges. Interestingly, the flanges are not uniform; two distinct types were seen. The second type, which appears on every third connection, it seemed, has a conical section and is much thicker than the other, more common joint. It was also a revelation to discover that the pipe's shore-side end is completely disconnected - and open. Other interesting sightings - a large Carp and several Bass. The visibility - thanks to the fairly tempestuous waters driven by a strong, southerly wind - was only about 30' and the water temperature 41℉ (5℃).

Friday, December 5, 2008

Fair but freezing...

Bright skies and freezing temperatures aren't the ideal accompaniment to a dive, but today that's just the way it was at the Gananoque Marina. The plan had been to visit the waters of the Canoe Club, but cursory inspection revealed the opaque results of waters recently in spate. Plan B took us to the Marina for the first time in many months. The result was a journey of exploration lasting some 50 minutes and resulting in just one interesting discovery; a relatively new aluminum ladder about 15' long. Its weight and the distance back to shore overcame the immediate temptation to recover it.

Besides the ladder, the viz of about 15-20' permitted sightings of some shoals of small fry, occasional Catfish and a couple of startled Pike. The minimum temperature recorded in the water was 39℉ (4℃). Topsides, a brisk wind and an air temperature of -2℃ (28℉) created the conditions for my drysuit to show the first post-dive ice formation this end of the year. Ah, don't you just love Winter diving! I should perhaps mention the other unusual sighting - our own Adam, who doesn't get wet often enough these days.

Monday, December 1, 2008

New book on Kingston Shipwrecks...

Jonathan Moore, a leading authority on the War of 1812 Shipwrecks that lie in Kingston's waters, launched his new booklet at the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes yesterday. Priced very competitively at C$ 7-95, and available from the publishers, the Cataraqui Archaeological Research Foundation at 611 Princess St, the richly illustrated booklet summarizes current knowledge on the historic wrecks concerned.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Stacked Hulls Metered and Measured...

Kevin and I had the opportunity, at dusk today, to get out and complete the staking of the line to the Stacked Hulls. The stakes start from the edge of the shelf and are carefully placed at 100' (30m) intervals. There are 7 of them, which given that they start at 380' (116m) - and the last stake runs 80' to the wreck itself, makes the total distance 1260' (384m). For safety's sake, the halfway stake is marked by a white, plastic jug. If you get to this and you're not sure about your air for the rest of the dive, it's time to turn around.

It's always interesting to enter the water as a storm is growing. Today, the waves were growing as the wind got up - and when we emerged from the water there was a snowy squall sweeping across the grounds of the Providence Care Facility. Ah, the deep joy of Winter diving. Water temperature - 42℉ (6℃). Visibility - despite the turbulent inshore waters - about 50'. More than sufficient to see the large Bass that were haunting the wreck in the half dark...

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Exercising Stakeholder Privileges...

Work on enhancing the line to the Stacked Hulls was the order of the day today. As well as checking and cleaning the line, it's amazing how much algae and gunk accumulates in just a matter of days, today's aim was to put in some long-planned stakes and take some measurements.

For interested parties, take note - the swim to the edge of the shelf from the start point close to the beach is 380' (116m). We then installed the first three stakes - at 100' (30m) intervals. That took us to roughly half way to the Hulls. We'll finish the staking - and measuring - very shortly, but my guess is that the total swim is going to come out to about 1300' (396m).

Water temperature today - 42℉ (6℃). And the visibility - 60' or better, I think...

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Guide to the Stacked Hulls now available from Preserve Our Wrecks...

Preserve Our Wrecks has prepared and provided a guide to finding the Stacked Hulls dive site using the new guideline the Group participated in laying earlier this year. Although this development comes late in the year, now that the charter boats are all laid up, but the ice is still awaited, this can be the perfect time to make some more shore dives. The visibility is great just now.

One word of caution. Even though the new guideline leads more directly to the dive site, the Stacked Hulls remain a daunting swim for most divers using a single Aluminum 80 cylinder. If you intend to give it a try, ensure that you pay close attention to your air consumption and turn back in good time, if you suspect that you will run low.

You will find POW's new guide by clicking here.

The Gloves are off... No ! on...


I promised myself on the last dive - on the wrecks in the harbour - that it would be the last wet glove diving of 2008, and I kept the promise to myself today. When three of us made our way out, yet again, to the wreck off Murney Tower, I was in dry gloves. Not that they make the slightest bit of difference to the persistent, minor leak I've been suffering from, and cannot trace and cure, in my drysuit. Oh well, who wants to be completely comfortable?

The dive was a good one, with excellent visibility - about 50' horizontally on the wreck, and the surface waves perfectly clearly visible 60' above. There were again large numbers of lazy Bass around the site. Kevin played with them - and amused himself photographing little Gobies too. He was wearing his new Aqualung Drysuit, which is a great garment, with excellent features and, so far as one can tell, first-class construction and finish. Thank you Gaetan for the great shore-side shot above..

There was evidence of a slight thermocline at about 50', with water that had been steadily 45℉ (7℃) dropping suddenly to 43℉ (6℃) on my gauge at least.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Guenter's photo expedition...

This late in the season every chance to get a special dive in has to be seized with enthusiasm. An opportunity to get out and visit the much discussed Guenter's Wreck arose today and we grabbed it with both hands. It had been an ambition to try and get some photography of this site for some time. Conditions were almost perfect, if you overlook the difficulty in getting water to circulate through outboard engines asked to work in freezing air temperatures.

Long and the short of it was that we got more than 30 minutes on the wreck, taking many pictures and enjoying the sort of light and visibility that only feature in the short, cold days of Fall and Winter. For the record - viz was around 50-60' and the water temperature seems to be stuck on 46℉ (8℃).

Monday, November 17, 2008

Wow - a first in local waters...

There are days when what should be a pretty ordinary dive becomes something quite unusual. Today was one of them. It had been decided to make a trip out to the Cora Post. It's a site we hadn't visited for some time, so that seemed as good a reason as any. There was nothing extraordinary about the preparations, except perhaps noticing how low the water has become.

Anyway, first issue is the fact that we can't locate the guideline in the shallows. No problem, already agreed to drop to the 35' contour and follow it to the wreck. Of course, reaching 35' we pick up the line almost immediately, quite close to the wreck. At about the same time, both of us spot a large shape in the water, just off the bow. It turns out to be a very large Muskie, completely unimpressed with our presence. It swam gently across our path and exited the area.

With a water temperature of just 46℉ (6℃), we elected to spend just a few minutes on the wreck; long enough to notice though that the stern section is really broken down now. We follow the line back along the contour and discover that, where it used to turn NW to head for the shallows, it's broken. As we consider this, we spot, just to our left, in about 35' of water, a huge baitball of small fish. Almost perfectly cylindrical, with the fish circling briskly, it was about 20' high and 10-12' in diameter. The fish were about 2" long and short, with a silvery colour. Even after applying the exaggeration factor, there must have literally been thousands of them. I have never seen anything remotely like it in local waters - and only rarely in waters further south. A real treat. Just goes to show - it's always worth diving here - and every day has the potential to astonish and impress underwater.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Quarry Time...

The wind was making the Lake look less hospitable again today, so it seemed a good time to go and check out the quarry at Brule Road. As it happened, the visit was made more exciting by disturbing a couple of lovers, who had rather carelessly parked on the top of the approach road. There's something incredibly amusing about watching two people rapidly dressing while trying to appear innocent...

After this frisson, the dive was almost routine. A theory that the water there would be colder than the Lake, because it's got less flow and, as a smaller, shallower body of water it's more directly influenced by the air temperature, was proved spot on. The low reading on our two computers was 44℉ (7℃). I made a mental note, as the numbers on my display descended into the 40s, to fit my dry gloves this weekend.

Although we didn't hit all the corners of the site, there didn't appear to be any new additions to the local 'attractions'. A solitary Bluegill was spotted. Viz wasn't too bad - given the rain and high winds we've had recently; probably about 40'.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

A night at POH

Last night three of us made for an enjoyable dive in and around Portsmouth Olympic harbour. Getting in the water a little after 6:30 pm we swam around only hitting about 20 feet in depth. WE did take the time to see the anchors and some of the ribs that are left in the area. There were lots of fish and large pike towards the end of the dive. The naval anchor with the swastika on it was quiet cover in algae and we were not able to find the raised symbol, mostly likely because of darkness though. It was a pleasant dive and always enjoyable to show someone a new site. The water temp was 50 F here but allowed us to stay in the water 47 minutes.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Fresh Fields...

Stimulated by a desire to do something new, Jim and I ventured out to Fairfield Park on Route 33 today to see what sort of profile the bottom presented. As it happens, this site, which is popular with visitors from Toronto and elsewhere, is not particularly appealing, but entry is easy - and the parking is on a hard, tarmac surface right beside the Lake. After the anticipated short, shoreside ledge, the bottom drops away gently in mud to a maximum depth of just under 100 feet. We registered 94' today. The good news is that the water temperature is stuck reasonably tolerably at 50℉ (10℃) - all the way down.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Surf entries on the Lake - unusual...

When a strong westerly breeze blows over the Lake for several hours, it can raise quite a wave on shore. But, that's no deterrent to the determined diver - and just to prove the fact - three of us made our way out to the Stacked Hulls this afternoon through some fairly heavy surf. I can't remember encountering quite so much surge in the shallows ever before. Understandably, the visibility was pretty poor in the early stages, but on the wrecks themselves we enjoyed about 30 feet or better - certainly enough to make for some decent video. I've decided that some of these big Bass are frustrated actors. They certainly mug it up for the camera. Check out the short video here. The water temp was the usual 50℉ (10℃). Total dive time, with about 15 minutes on the wreck, was 56 minutes.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Pics of the Pumphouse Intake Pipe and Support...

Here are a few pictures of the structure and intake pipe that serve the Kingston Pumphouse. An interesting site - it's fascinating to imagine the engineering involved in putting this in place at the time it was constructed.


Thursday, November 6, 2008

Pumphouse prowling...

Grabbed the opportunity today to get out on the Lake and answer a request from staff at the Pumphouse Museum for some details on the pipework and structures serving their site. The effort was made with Adam, who received the original request. Conditions were perfect and we visited two sites. The pic is from the first one, which is not the intake support for the pumphouse, but another unattributed structure, albeit it lies right beside the pipe. Water temp 50℉ again with visibility somewhere around 60 feet. Tons of Bass on both sites...

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Magnificent Seven...


Well, perhaps not that magnificent, but seven anyway. That's how many divers made a foray from Morton's Wharf this evening, entering the water as the sun set and emerging in the dark. Wow, you say, how daring !

Whatever, the dive was just fine - about 30 minutes of gentle exploration of the underwater structure, some gentle Bass teasing and a little bit of friendly, 'my light's better than your light' going on.

Followed by Timmy's and a bit of light banter - altogether an excellent outing.

Water temp 50℉ (10℃) - viz about 40 feet...

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Stacked Hulls Line in good shape...

The weather's just too good these days to pass up diving. Today, it presented an opportunity to make a check dive on the line out to the Stacked Hulls. It's become such a straightforward trip with the new route that there's no wasted effort in locating or following the guideline. But, caution should be exercised. This is still an each way trip of about 1000 feet. If you're going to attempt it - and have any time to spend on the wrecks, which deserve it, then make sure your air consumption is modest, if you're diving a single 80 cu ft cylinder. The line was in good shape. The weeds are all dying back and the interference and drag they had been causing is all but past. For the record, the water temperature was 50℉ (10℃). With a bit of wind playing across the Lake and generating a slight swell, the visibility was down on the weekend, but still reasonable at about 25-30 feet.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Nine at Ten...


Nine Club members made the trip this afternoon to the wreck off Murney Tower in 10℃ water (50℉). On the second day of a really beautiful weekend, on Kevin's initiative, the group met at the Club to satisfy equipment and air needs, then hit the site. It was particularly good to see a new diver from the most recent basic course getting his feet (and everything else) wet. Well done, Jesse. The visibility on the wreck was the best I have seen - probably 40' or better - and of course made me instantly regret not taking a camera out with me. At either end, bow and stern, the whole structure was visible. So too were many large Smallmouth Bass, which appear to have taken up residence on the wreck. Hunger seems to be stimulating their curiosity and they were very happy to approach the divers. It was good to see that the guidelines are still in place. The opportunity was taken to clean them off a bit and to remove weedy debris from the main line.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Another diver advances...

Mario is entitled to look pleased with life. He completed his Advanced Open Water certification today with a Search and Recovery adventure at the KPH site. Conditions couldn't really have been better. The Sun was shining brightly, air temperatures were above freezing (but not much at 4℃) and the visibility was outstanding at roughly 50 feet. The exertions of executing search patterns and other tasks ensured that the water, cool at 51℉ (11℃), didn't have too chilling an effect. All in all, a very successful final qualification dive and a pleasant experience for all concerned. Well done, Mario....

Saturday, October 25, 2008

More from DEMA...

Yesterday, I promised more from the Dive Equipment and Marketing Show here in the States. Here it is. Continuing the theme of trends, something did seem to be more evident here than in previous years. This is the issue of accessibility to diving for disabled individuals. The picture is of the stand manned by volunteers of SUDS (Soldiers undertaking disabled scuba). It is just one of several organisations with representatives at the Show advertising their work and seeking support. Others included Eels on wheels, the International Association of Handicapped Divers and the Handicapped Scuba Association. Seeing them here, and reflecting on the amount of disabled sailing activity there is in Kingston, makes you wonder whether there shouldn't be some sort of support on the diving front.

The good news at the Show is that I have seen many, many Canadians down here. I went to an interesting talk by the owners of Nautilus Explorer, which operates out of Vancouver. They spend their Summers around BC and Alaska, then Winter in Guadalupe and Socorro visiting Great White Sharks and Mantas amongst other species. BARE and Whites are amongst the larger manufacturers out of Canada. Another, smaller, but very significant company from Ontario is Reefnet, who make data loggers and excellent diveguides and other products.






On the lighter side of product development, there are always products that amuse, but aren't very likely to attract the more serious diver. This video-capturing dive mask caught my eye.






Or perhaps the Club would like to invest in some fins that identify the instructors.

Friday, October 24, 2008

DEMA Show Report...

Some of you will already know that I'm in the States right now at the annual Dive Equipment and Marketing Show. This is a trade-only show and the biggest of its kind in the World. It's the forum for announcement of major product launches and advertising of dive travel deals for the next season. The Show also provides the facility for manufacturers and training agencies to centralize seminars, workshops and classes that update or inform their dealers, members or interested trade representatives. Dive retailers come here to benefit from special deals on equipment for next season and to catch up with news and meet colleagues. There's way too much here to describe everything, but what I'll try and do is give a flavour of themes and general trends.

The first general trend here is towards rebreathers. All the major manufacturers are here - and there must be about a dozen now. There's no question, rebreather makers are increasingly striving for a mainstream market. Failsafe devices are being introduced to minimize risk and aim for idiot proofing; and prices are coming down. The other noticeable trend is towards manufacturers leaving their traditional lanes in the road to diversify. A sign of hard times in the industry perhaps - or the economic downturn depressing orders? BARE is a good example. Traditionally, a company that has been all about exposure protection, they have released their own buoyancy compensator.

On the travel side, there's a huge showing here at the Show from the Far East. What was once largely inaccessible, for reasons of cost and airline reach, is now opening up. Equipment manufacturers from the Far East are also much more in evidence. If experience of other industries holds good, the quality of their gear should be pretty high and their challenge will be gaining a foothold. Talking about footholds, here's an interesting observation. If you were asked to name the biggest, most prestigious name in scuba gear, the odds are you would say Scubapro. And they're not here - at all. They've actually skipped DEMA for several years. That shows some confidence. They don't seem to see the need to promote their equipment to the trade.

On the seminar and workshop side, I've attended a couple of excellent DAN lectures. These dealt with hazards of breath-hold diving and myths of dive physiology. I also listened to two great illustrated talks on video techniques and the use of underwater filters. These are given by some of the industry's best known and most respected figures.

With conservation writ large at the event, there have also been some great talks on specific issues and projects. One of these was work to save the Pacific Leatherback Turtle, which is on the verge of extinction.

More tomorrow, if the time is available - and I'll try to focus on some of the dive equipment developments.

Club recognized for Community Contribution...

Members will be pleased, I hope, to know that Gananoque Canoe Club has recognized the Dolphins' efforts this year to retrieve sunken kayaks with the Commodore's Award for Community Support. This reflects well on our whole membership, demonstrating our interest in engagement with other sporting groups and the public as a whole. Every time we answer a question about our diving and what it entails, we're promoting both the sport and the Canadian Forces ethic of service. Might not seem that way, but that's a fact. Everybody should give themselves a small pat on the back this morning...

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Drysuit Day...


Now that the weather's turning colder and the water with it, it's time to turn to drysuits, if you haven't already. Mario selected the Drysuit Adventure as one of his AOW dives and today presented the opportunity to complete it. He was joined by Steve Liu, who enjoyed the experience just as much in his superb, previously-owned DUI suit. We went out of Navy Bay off the boat launch ramp by St Lawrence Pier for just over 30 minutes. The water temp was 57℉ (14℃) and the visibility about 40 feet. An oddity on this dive - although it was conducted about an hour before sunset- was the large number of Catfish seen.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Visit to the Cedar Island Wreck...

The opportunity arose today to make a late season expedition onto the Lake. Although the traffic to the wind farm project continues to be very busy, and the Wolfe Islander is in near constant motion, otherwise there's not much boating going on. That made conditions pretty good to visit one of the wrecks lying close to Cedar Island. These are infrequently dived on and it was my first visit to this particular one. I took the camera down in hopes of getting some record-quality shots, but the visibility of about 20 feet precluded that. Nevertheless, I got some decent pictures, one of which accompanies this entry. The wreck is not enormous - and it's hard to gauge what it might be. But, there are clues. It has the very blunt bow of a possible cargo barge - and a length, in all probability, to match. There is a rudder post present - and it's not large. The frames are not substantial - leading to a suspicion that the vessel was no warship. But, there are some vertical posts that defy attribution, unless, perhaps, they supported an upper deck...

Anyhoo... the answer lies with a more detailed examination another day. Today, the temperature was 57℉ (14℃).

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Stacked Hulls ...


As suggested yesterday, the chance was taken today, in ideal weather conditions, to make an expedition to the Stacked Hulls. It's been a week or two since the line was checked, so there was no knowing what to expect. In fact, the line was easy to pick up and ran uninterrupted out to the wrecks, where the viz was in excess of 40 feet. There was at least one very large shoal of Perch on the wrecks and several large and lazy Bass. At the shore end, it's remarkable how quickly the weed beds in the shallows are dying back and thinning out. The plants are already mainly brown and lifeless. Anyone who wants to make us of this new line, which takes several minutes off the old swim to the Hulls, should e-mail me for info on picking it up. Alternatively, if you take the old line out of Portsmouth to the right-angled bend in it and 'jump off' there swimming 220° you'll pick up the new line at about the half way point. Water temperature today out on the Hulls (where a small thermocline could be felt at about 50 feet) 57℉ (14℃).

Monday, October 6, 2008

Chasing 50...

As the colder weather approaches, one of our members is chasing her 50th dive. Ashley is looking for opportunities to hit that magic figure before the season ends. Now that we're aware of the challenge, we're doing our best to support the effort. Today, the chance arose to introduce her to the waters of the Gananoque River. Limited in depth, this site has much to commend it in terms of things to see. It's also an easy entry and exit compared to many. An expedition to the Stacked Hulls is on the agenda. Watch this space for the announcement of the 50th - soon...

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Dive 'n Dine - again...

It takes energy to keep a dive club going - and Ashley's idea of getting together for a dive and then enjoying a late season, informal barbecue at Nicholson's Point was an excellent example of the way to go. Although only a few people managed to get out, it was very clear that they thoroughly enjoyed the experience of soaking up Autumn sunshine at the water's edge after a decent dive outing. The dive also presented the opportunity for Mario to complete his Deep Adventure on the way to completing Advanced Open Water certification. His dive was flawless. Once again, it's evident that the water is turning colder. This should be no surprise given the cold nights we're 'enjoying'. The low temperature, below a 70' thermocline, was somewhere around 53℉ (12℃). The visibility though, at the greater depths, is in excess of 40 feet now.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

Back to Gan...

Another expedition to the Canoe Club 'lake' in Gananoque. The most interesting feature today was the fairly marked drop in water temperature over the last week or so. The minimum noted today was 57℉ (14℃). This is down about 10℉. Otherwise, the nose cone of a kayak was recovered to close the books on one lost from the Club and a few lonely Bluegills were amused by the passage of a pair of divers through their territory.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Humorous happening...

Gaetan Grondin created this delightful picture after visiting the night dive the other night. His expertise with Photoshop is truly amazing - and he has a great sense of humour. Gotta look forward to him getting an underwater housing and producing some great underwater shots...

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Big weekend for open water divers


Today was the final dives for 11 divers on the recent open water course. A total of 15 divers completed two dives at the marine museum. This was the first group that has been completing their pool and classroom work. All of the divers are keen to get out and dive more and are looking forward to interacting with the existing club members. I am sure they will find the club members more then happy to help them gain more experience and tell them about the numerous dives in the area.

Outing to the William Jamieson...

Nine divers made it out this morning to the wreck of the William Jamieson at the far end of Amherst Island. The weather was a mixed bag. Occasional patches of sunshine were interspersed with light rain. None of that affected a good dive on an interesting wreck. The visibility, except where bottom disturbance played a role, was about 40 feet. Despite the fact that, elsewhere, the thermocline is now at about 55 feet, the water was a pretty reasonable 64℉ (18℃) from top to bottom. I almost regretted the hood and gloves I'd donned in anticipation of a colder, bottom layer. There wasn't a lot of fish life, but that's not unusual just now - especially in broad daylight.