Saturday, February 13, 2010

Ice Dive 2010 working well...


Thanks to the concerted efforts of many people, this weekend's ice diving course got away to a great start today. It helps, of course, to have near perfect conditions. The ice is at least 12' thick and the cold, clear weather has maintained it, whilst making daytime temperatures reasonable.

The four students have all absorbed the lessons associated with the specialty well and, when the time came to apply them this morning, there were no great challenges. The only minor disappointment has been visibility considerably less pleasing than expected. The water temperature in the quarry is 39℉ (4℃), but the viz is only about 15-20 feet. There's a milky cloudiness in the upper levels that defies explanation, but definitely limits sight lines.

Many thanks to the helpers who made the day a success. Line tending and general administration are not exciting tasks, but the course doesn't go ahead without them. Good too to see Gerhard, a previous ice diving graduate, who joined us for one of the assigned dives.

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