Pool's Open...

The change in the weather recently, and particularly the high temperatures, have combined to open the Lake for business. Last night, Marc-Etienne, Todd and I took a trip to the KGH wreck to prove the line and check out conditions. With an air temperature of 11℃ (52℉), you might have hoped for some warming of the water. Clearly though, whatever the recent sunshine has done to the ice, it hasn't substantially changed the water temperature. We recorded just 35℉ (2℃) during our dive. On the plus side, the visibility is great. Marine life was noticeably scarce. The only fish to be seen in the shallows and on the swim out to the wreck were dead ones. On the wreck itself, there were many Bass lurking around. They seemed quite surprised to have their evening interrupted by divers. I guess there haven't been many out there in recent weeks. A lone Crayfish was spotted by Todd during the safety stop on our return.

For Marc-Etienne, as the picture shows, this was also an opportunity to try out his new Poseidon Besea Backpack style BC.

This could be the last time...

You've dated yourself if you hear the Rolling Stones after you read the title to today's entry. It's appropriate though, because ice is encroaching quite quickly now on the shore dive entry points around the Lake. Todd and I had to crackle our way through a thin crust of light, transparent ice at KPH on entry, and larger areas of thicker ice were visible offshore. Our first choice of site, Portsmouth, where we'd like to have taken advantage of great visibility and the bright sunshine to photograph the wreck fragments, was already ice-locked.

With air temperatures of -11℃ (12℉), we did attract some curious looks from passers-by, some of whom even stopped to ask what we were doing - or should I make that "why?" The answer is that we just wanted to see what was going on underwater. And the answer was - not much. Besides a few stupefied, or half frozen, Gobies, there really wasn't much life around. Perhaps the fact that Todd's computer showed a minimum water temperature of 32℉ (0℃) had something to do with it. To be fair, at depth, the water was warmer; 34℉ (1℃). The time may fast be approaching where those of us with ice diving qualifications will be looking to exercise them. Which reminds me, must make sure the blade on my chainsaw is the right way round this year...

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.

I Declare this Lake Open...

Yesterday, on a visit to Portsmouth, there was substantial ice cover all along the shore. But today, after strong overnight winds, the situation was completely changed. A visit to RMC's St Lawrence Pier revealed the Southern side to be completely free of ice. Examination of the West St Ramp also showed the ice to have disappeared offshore. Of course, caution is essential during this period, when drifting ice, propelled by the prevailing winds, can catch an unwary diver out by cutting off his exit point. Today produced perfect conditions for making a first foray back into the Lake though. Entry at West St started a 30 minute expedition out to the Barge and back. Visibility was limited to about 20' - and occasionally less. The only signs of life were the occasional tracks made by the mudpuppies in the silt. Water temperature, unsurprisingly, was only 34F (1C). Bright sunshine and a temperature of 2C (36F) ashore made the preparations relatively straightforward.

Ice is nice...

When you're ice qualified and Spring is clearly on the way, you seize every chance to get wet where some of the water's still solid. Today's destination, once again, was Brule Road, where we took a large reel out to its full extent exploring some of the usual sights. For the second time, close to the entrance hole, a large bullfrog was defying hibernation to examine our activities. A Small shoal of Striped Bass was also very active. Conditions couldn't have been better, with clear, blue skies, flat calm and an air temperature of 2C (36F). The water was 40F (4C) and visibility better than 50 feet.

Snow business diving in this weather...

Showing no respect for the blowing snow, Adam and I ventured under the ice at Brule Road today to practice line drills and explore the quarry. You'll appreciate that this wasn't a careless venture. In fact, we spent more than an hour in discussion of the 'what ifs' before we even suited up and we both carried redundant air supplies.

There were some really neat aspects of the dive. For example, we inserted an ice screw into the underside of the ice (no one can interfere with it there!) and every thread of the screw was visible penetrating the crystal clear medium. We also surprised two very dozy - and really rather large - Bass on the bottom near the cabin cruiser. One of them was so torpid that it resisted the urge to swim away until we were literally within inches of it.

The visibility under the ice was amazing - and despite overcast skies and snow cover on the surface - there was a lot of light. Following strict gas management rules, we completed the dive in 38 minutes. For the sake of the record, the air temperature was -1C (30F) and the water 38F (3C).

Four New Ice Divers...

The 2008 Ice DIving Course was brought to an end this afternoon. Congratulations to Nancy, Dianne, Otto-Carl and Gerhard on their new certifications. And thank you to everyone (and there were many) who provided assistance. This most labour-intensive of all our training offerings demands a great deal from everyone involved. This year the demands on the instructor were considerable too. It's greatly to our chief instructor's credit that he battled an infection all weekend to keep the course on track.

Pictures have been posted on our Club Flickr site. A brief video with highlights of the weekend's activities can be seen on You Tube.

For the record keepers, and to save you reading the comment below, we saw water temps of about 40F (4C) and air temperatures between freezing and -8C (18F). There has to be a suspicion that the quarry is spring fed. That water temperature defies any other explanation. The weather was changeable, with blowing snow one minute and bright sunshine the next.

And if you like a little bit of scurrilous gossip - ask anyone who was there about the chainsaw and the jeep...

Ice-capades...

The first day of the annual ice course is behind us. It can be counted a great success. All four students got dive time and 'enjoyed' the challenges posed by their instructor. The entry point was perfectly placed, with the cabin cruiser sitting just off to one side of it and other attractions within range of the dive tethers. There is no doubt that the day's success owed a great deal to the small band of volunteers who assisted with transporting the equipment, setting up the tent and dive site and acting as dive tenders, cooks and more. Pictures and video will be posted on the conclusion of the course, but the sample shown here gives a feel for the day...

Ice Course Initial Session Completed..

The four divers taking this year's ice diving course completed their first session last night. A thorough review of the various procedures involved and an examination of equipment was followed up with time in the pool rehearsing the various skills that are unique to the discipline. Several volunteers were on hand to assist with the administration and to keep things ticking along. By the end of the session, everyone had a pretty clear idea of what the coming weekend's activities will entail. The divers had also, importantly, identified many of the challenges that ice diving will present. Minor gear revisions and thoughts about how to address skill issues will be the focus of attention before we hit the quarry on Saturday morning.

If anyone is thinking of visiting the site over the weekend, the best times to do so would probably be early afternoon on Saturday or shortly before lunchtime on Sunday.

Ice Course Preparations...

Adam and I spent a couple of hours this morning examining options for the location to host this year's ice diving course. Members will by now have seen his e-mail on the subject. The likelihood is that the course will be held at Brule Road, where the picture shown above was taken today. Conditions seemed excellent and the quarry offers several interesting objects for inspection, including the cabin cruiser which could be clearly seen through an exploratory ice hole this morning.

Closed until further notice....?

Anyone harbouring ambitions to shore dive Lake Ontario is likely to be disappointed for the next little while. The picture was taken during a quick survey of popular sites this morning. This leaves determined divers with the choice of ice diving (if appropriately trained and where the conditions permit - perhaps Brule Rd) or visiting sites on the Rideau, such as Brewer's Mills, which is open.

Warm water ice diving...?

Five of us made our way to Brule Road today to put into practice what we learned last week on the ice diving course. Dianne graciously acted as senior tender and - crucially - brought along the chainsaw. Jim, Rob, Matt and myself did the heavy lifting and ventured into the not so icy depths.

By now, reading the title and reaching the last phrase, you're asking yourself - 'What.. ?' Well the answer is that we discovered the water temperature, for whatever reason, to be a balmy 40F (4C). Little enough you might think. But all the divers regarded the water as distinctly warmer than we've been diving recently in the Lake or the Seaway.

For the record - we all got in at least one dive of 30 minutes or more. All ice diving precautions were fully observed and the experience was highly enjoyable. It helps a lot when it's sunny topsides and the air temperature's just below freezing at -3C (28F). Visibility was in the order of 60 feet or more. This helped us take a good look at a new arrival in the lake - a rather new looking Hyundai Santa Fe (now upside down, with licence plates still attached). The things you see diving !

Ice is intense - but oh, so worthwhile...

The picture of Adam chasing bubbles under 14" of ice gives you a feel for the attractions of ice diving. A long weekend - and a huge amount of supporting effort from many members of the Club - resulted by Sunday afternoon in Jim, Stephen (a new member) and myself gaining our coveted Ice Diver certifications. Many lessons were learned - and some new ground was broken with research into the location and rescue of lost divers. Expect to hear and see more on that theme in due course.

Many of our members and friends took a lot of pictures over the weekend. Adam is collecting and collating the results. If you have pictures that he's not already expecting to receive, please do pass him copies. Quite a bit of video was taken of the training too. That will be edited and made accessible to members before long.

Ice Dive Course is really cool....

The first day of this year's ice diving course went really well. Success owes a great deal to our Chief Instructor, without whose direction it could never have happened. But a really strong contribution was made by a host of Club volunteers - and members' parents in some cases. Their work to prepare the site, feed the team and undertake the surface tasks that are a key to safety was invaluable - and substantial.

It was good to be visited by Jay Westman, the Saturday anchor for CKWS TV's NEWSwatch programme. His piece on the event, which aired at 6pm the same evening, was well balanced and very well edited. A contribution of underwater footage shot on scene by Adam definitely enriched the broadcast.

Many members were taking photographs, that will doubtless appear in due course. Watch this space!

Underwater exploration with a difference...

Adam and I returned to the ice at Navy Bay today to deploy an underwater camera through the ice in search of interesting artifacts. The compact device - with a sensor no larger than a can of beans - comes with a monochrome viewer, built-in electronic compass and lighting aids covering both visible and infra-red spectra.

Our search was successful and the fruits of our labours will be apparent to those who venture onto or into Navy Bay over this coming weekend's Ice Diving Course. News of that will be posted daily for those who cannot attend, but maintain an interest...

Snow Sculpture in Navy Bay

During final safety checks of the ice thickness on Navy Bay today before the course this weekend, the beauty of some of the drift snow formations was noticed. The accompanying pic shows just one that caught my eye.

For those coming along on the weekend - you will be reassured to hear that several test holes produced ice thicknesses - in all cases - of about 14" (36cm).

Time spent in reconnaissance....

Adam and I spent a profitable half hour or so this morning checking out the ice in Navy Bay. This was an essential safety measure before the ice diving course runs this coming weekend. A test bore revealed that the ice - even out in the middle of the Bay - is about 13" (33cm) thick.

One really pleasing discovery was the presence of large tracts of very clear ice. The bottom (about 20 feet (6m) down) could be very clearly seen. We were even able to read labels on debris and make out dead fish.

A likely site for the weekend's training was selected and recorded. Now all we have to worry about is the snow that is forecast to fall in the interim...

By the way - for those who might have been wavering about a decision - there are still a couple of places available on the course. Enquiries or applications should be addressed directly to Adam.

The Big Freeze...

Jeremie and I headed for Rockport today on the understanding that there was a small area of open water that might allow us to dive. The area proved to be very small - sufficient only for ice divers to use for entry, and exit, I guess...

We retired to Dive-Tech to complain about the conditions only to receive the encouraging news that there may not be any open water available for several weeks. The prediction is that the first area to open up will be the dock at Prescott. We will see. In the meantime, I will monitor the local Kingston sites for any signs of open water.

I guess the bottom line is that I encourage anyone who isn't committed yet to sign up for the ice diving course over the weekend 16-18 February. This might be the best way to get wet in the near future. Unless, of course, you have some spare air miles...

Come on in - the water's lovely...

Don't let the sunshine and blue skies fool you... It was a cold day in A-Bay, with a Westerly wind cutting through the divers, who didn't appreciate the air temperature of -11C (12F). Adam, Matt and Mike had made the pilgrimage over the border to visit the site of the 'Islander'.

Removal of sufficient ice (about 3" thick) to effect entry was quite straightforward, despite the attraction the hole seemed to have for the ice picks (ask Adam about that one..) Viz was excellent and there was no appreciable current, although out in the main channel the ice being carried downstream at a fair rate was steadily pecking at the shore.

The whole day would have been disastrous if it hadn't been for the outstanding services of the staff at Jreck's Subs, who provided not only sustenance, but shelter.