Sidemount Try-Out...

Today was a great day to dive. The Sun was glistening on the Lake, but a brisk breeze kept things moderately cool while gearing up. Adam had given me the chance to try out a side-mount rig and we chose Morton's Wharf to do so. The rig was perfect. Nothing needed to be done to the fit or weight - and it was really comfortable. I could get used to this.

The dive lasted just on 70 minutes in water that, at its low point, was just 46℉ (8℃). Visibility, although there was a murky layer in the upper sections, was great, probably as much as 60 feet in the deeper water. There were many Bass lurking on the Wharf and, in the area just to the West of it, a large school of Carp - perhaps as many as 8 or 10.

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...

Visit from members of CFB Borden's dive club

Four of the Dolphin's members had the pleasure of a visit from CFB Borden's dive club the Aquateers. Two of their members made the trek down to Kingston on the weekend. I didn't get a chance to dive with them on Saturday but we did meet up on Sunday morning. The first dive of the day was to the Alexander Henry. We spent about 42 minutes in the water. The water temp was a very comfortable 54 degrees. We then moved to the Domino theatre and dove for another 43 minutes. Our max depth was 27 feet and the water temp here was 59 degrees. I had a chance to see a couple of nice size carp while we were here. The guys found a golf ball and an old wooden peg. A few small treasures to take back home. We toured around the old wharf for a while and then turned the dive.

A night at the theatre...

With longer days and warmer water, the temptation to dive in the evenings is irresistible, especially for our members who work for a living. Tonight, four of us went exploring around the old wharf that lies off the area of the Domino Theatre. The trip was worthwhile, with several large Bass swimming around the logs and the first sighting this year of a long string of (frog) spawn at one point. For Kevin, whose first dive it was on this site, it was interesting to turn over the old tin plates and mugs that are strewn about the area close to shore. It's heartening to see that the water is creeping up in temperature almost daily. Tonight, the lowest temperature registered was 42F (6C) - a degree or so warmer than just a couple of days ago. (Picture courtesy of Kevin Leblanc)

Morton's Meandering

Following up on a visit by others over the weekend, I made a dive on Morton's Wharf this morning. Conditions were pretty good and a couple of lazy Bass accompanied us for much of the dive. Perch were also seen near the entry point. Life, as reported recently, really is returning to the Lake. Visibility was in the order of 40 feet and the water is showing signs of warming up. A minimum temperature of 41°F (5°C) was recorded.

Double dipping in the Lake

Today I had the pleasure of Diving with Sébastien and we got two dives in at Deadmans Bay and the Domino Theatre. Each dive was roughly 40 mins in 39f/4c of water. The vis was not to great in the range of 20 ft. Highlights of the first dive were turtles in Deadmans Bay with the odd catfish and perch. It was a pleasant surprise to see life returning to the lake. On our second dive at Domino theatre we only saw some gobies. We were able to see a few canteens and tin plates. I big mention does need to go to Sébastien who dove today in a wet suit.

Morton Street Wharf this afternoon.

Rob, Scott and I dove at the Morton street wharf this afternoon. We spent 56 minutes under the water. We had a good look at the wharf as well as the fish. On our way out just as I got to the end of the Wharf I saw a large sheeps head fish. I followed it a small way then moved on to go around the wharf. On the other side of the wharf we ran into a small school of bass. They seemed to be curious about us. They followed us for a while. For all those fishermen out there. I KNOW WHERE THE FISH ARE!!! You guys should learn how to dive I think we could have reached out and almost touched the bass today. At this point we turned the dive. The water was about 70 degrees and the visibility was around 20 feet.

Two dives

Today I had the pleasure of showing some members from the CFB Borden two sites here in Kingston. Approxiamately 10 of their club members came to the area for the weekend; and after spending yesterday in the Brockville area they got up early to jump in at the pump house. Our second dive was at the Domino theatre. The 70f water seemed to be cooler first thing with the cooler air temparture. We made it to the barge and saw lots of fish highlighted personally by the sight of a huge pike. After our 50 min swim we jumped in the cars and went down the road to Morton street to swimm around the under water docks here. Here some members found old canteens and plates. Most divers stayed in the water here for about 1 hour. I am sure they had a great time and I was telling them about some of our other area dives and the members are planning to come back in Septmeber to try some of our other diving hot spots.

Morton's Wharf and St Lawrence..

Decent dive today on Morton's Wharf and the wreck of the St Lawrence. With visibility down to something like 20', it was certainly a good thing to have a firm handle on the navigation. The round trip was completed without a single surface check. The fish life is frenetic just now. Bass are busy setting up spawning circles, the Perch are very active and Pike are patrolling the shallows in a very sinister manner. The Gobies, of course, are everywhere..

The pic was taken on the top of the Wharf, which we rarely visit. There's an interesting swim-through option here (Adam and Matt, take note). Although I'm prepared to accept that this is a shallow dive, it's still pretty remarkable that the water temperature around 25' is 63F (17C). The only thing that I can say against this dive site is that the entry and exit are a real pain - literally. The broken rocks and building rubble on the waterline are really difficult to deal with. But, the dive is worth it -

Mike makes his Century.... this year!

With a 60 minute dive on Morton's Wharf and a visit to the wreck of the St Lawrence, I notched up Dive 100 this year. I was delighted to share the experience with Nancy and Jim. Getting Nancy to the St Lawrence after she had been thwarted on a couple of previous attempts was very satisfying.

For those who are interested in the conditions; visibility was poor at about 25 feet, water temperature 55F (13C) in the shallows and 47F (8C) a little deeper. We saw a large Pike close to the wreck in the bay and several good-sized Smallmouth Bass in and around the Wharf.

Nancy added some successful bag deployment practice to the outing and we all emerged happy, smiling and warm...

Morton's Wharf and St Lawrence..

Dianne, Chris and I spent just under an hour in the water this afternoon enjoying a leisurely examination of the remains of Morton's Wharf and the nearby remnants of HMS St Lawrence. Conditions were reasonable, though the visibility is shrinking quickly thanks to great clouds of algae. There are huge clumps of the bright green algae accumulating on the bottom. Today, I'd judge the usable range of vision to be about 35 feet.

The water remains stubbornly cold - 42F (6C). Nevertheless, fish life is beginning to reappear in greater numbers. A few large Bass were present near the remains of the Wharf - and at least one Freshwater Drum (first seen this year) was also cruising the area.

Sunday Outing...

In the second of the New Year's Sunday dives, five Club members ventured out at Morton's Wharf. Rob, Olivier, Dianne, Steve and myself found our way around the submerged wharf and then moved southwards to find what little depth we could. Eventually, we turned around at about 20 minutes and 52 feet to make our way home. The water temperature was 38F (3C) and the air temperature a tolerable -3C (28F) in still conditions. Visibility was in the order of about 40 feet at best - but there wasn't much to see. The picture shows an interesting range of drysuits. Bare get the popular vote, with two HD Tech Drys and a NexGen. Olivier sports a natty White's trilam and Steve a beautifully fitted and very smart Diving Concepts trilam suit.

Dive Report - December 21st, 2006

Today's dive was made in bright sunlight and little wind. The Lake was relatively calm and conditions pretty good. Jim, Dianne and I spent about 38 minutes wandering around Morton's Wharf and inspecting the (very shallow) remains of the HMS St Lawrence nearby.

Highlight - apart from actually being close to the massive timbers of a 19th century warship - spotting a couple of large, and pretty implacable, Northern Pike on the return journey.



A few minutes of low-res video of the dive can be found on Google Video. More work needed on this particular discipline.

Water temperature remains stubbornly stuck at about 40F (5C). Visibility was something like 35 feet.