Oh what a night..!

It's not very often that the Lake is glassy calm, but it certainly was last night, when Todd and I jumped in at KPH. We'd expected good visibility and were rewarded with exactly that. The range was limited only by the reach of our lights. Was there much to see though, you ask..? Well, yes, some Bass, Perch and Mud Puppies - and the occasional Catfish (we were in the water quite early). The water temperature was the same 52℉ (11℃) we've been seeing for a few days now. The good news is that the weeds are definitely dying back. We spent about 45 minutes in the water, checking out a rumour passed by one of the local estate managers that a car might lie off the eastern end of the wharf, amongst other things. There was no car, but it was interesting to note how badly undermined that eastern wall of the dock is. The cavities extend more than a dozen feet in some places. The key message - don't park on the eastern side of the wharf - the pothole may be deeper than you think!

Earlier in the day, I had the pleasure of introducing a member of our sister Club, the Flying Frogmen in Trenton, to Morton's Wharf and the St Lawrence site. That too was a good dive, with moderate visibility. This is a great time of year to be in the water. It's not too desperately chilly yet, and the algae and particulates are settling out nicely.

Triple Treasure...

At the invitation of a good friend, I was able to make three dives downriver today. The first was the always excellent Keystorm, on which the pictures were taken. The second the America and the third a type of wall / drift dive on a site called Devil's Oven near Alexandria Bay. The conditions on the wrecks were perfect with 70℉ (21℃) water and decent visibility in as low a current as I can recall for the St Lawrence. We were also lucky enough to avoid the hordes of divers that often descend (literally) on these popular sites. It was a special treat to see many large Pickerel busy on the hull of the America.

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.