Dive tally taking off...

Now that the ice has largely disappeared, and the Lake is bathed in Spring sunshine, there's really no excuse for not diving. Well, one maybe; the water temperature is still stubbornly stuck at 35℉ (2℃). Kevin and I didn't allow that to deter us from a dive at KPH. Entry was a breeze, though the water level is very low. As an illustration, a large, level area that you usually stand on, at waist depth, to take off fins, was now in water that just reached the lower calf. The dive, out to the STOP sign and then in an arc East and North, was a gentle one. No significant signs of life were seen, though Crayfish or Mudpuppy trails were evident in the silt.

I liked it so much...

Yesterday's dive was so much fun that Dianne and I returned to Rockport and the Kinghorn today. It was no less enjoyable an experience, although there were fewer Crayfish to be seen. Conditions were very similar to yesterday, so I'll avoid repetition on that score. I'm providing a few pictures taken today with a wide-angle lens.






And here's a picture of the speedboat hull that lies about halfway out to the wreck along the line. It's adjacent to the 'STOP' sign that warns divers about the perils of being tempted beyond their personal levels of competence and training.



I didn't mention it yesterday, but it's important that anyone attempting this dive from shore appreciate the distance involved and the depth at the final destination (90' ±2' / 27m). While it's by no means essential to use enriched air on this dive, a larger capacity tank and, ideally, a redundant air source are advisable.

Portsmouth Refresher...

Made a circuit of the sights of Portsmouth Harbour this morning with Kevin Leblanc and James Fischer. This worked out well, as Kevin has not been to this site before. We worked our way around the wreck fragments before heading for the pipe and out to the anchors and the STOP sign. It's worth noting that the left hand line to the anchors is largely missing. It's still possible to take the right hand route to the newer anchor. The other interesting observation this morning was the almost total absence of fish life. I don't think that I even spotted gobies. Viz was down on recent days, probably thanks to the Sou'Wester that's been blowing over the last couple of days. Water temperature 35F (2C) and the air temperature a mild 1C (34F) in calm conditions. The 30 minute dive was just about enough for all of us as hands started to chill. Kevin shot many excellent photographs and some video. A couple of examples precede this post.