Americans enact Shark Conservation Law..

There was a lot of criticism of the lame duck Congress leading up to the turn of the year. It turned out though that quite a lot was actually achieved. One very important piece of legislation didn't make the headlines. President Obama signed a Shark Conservation Act into law on January 4th. Details in the link you can reach by clicking here.

Wilderness Battleship - Public Lecture - September 30th

Anyone interested in the naval history of Lake Ontario should pencil in September 30th at 7 pm to attend a public lecture in Kingston's Memorial Hall (inside City Hall). The lecture, celebrating the '25th Anniversary Archaeology Public Lecture' series will be given by Timothy J. Abel, Director of the Jefferson County Historical Society in Watertown , New York. The title 'Wildnerness Battleship' will tell the story of Lake Ontario's Forgotten Naval Shipyard.

Admission is FREE...

New shore dive for your delight...

Following up on an exploratory dive last week, local divers tonight placed a line from shore near Kingston General Hospital to a wreck that lies in 60 feet of water, just 20 minutes gentle swim away. The line starts around the 20 foot depth contour and is most easily located by entering the water somewhere near the middle of the car park close to Murney Tower and swimming eastwards along the 20 foot contour until you pick it up. It's bright yellow and leads almost directly south to the bow of the wreck.

The wreck is in very good condition; one of the more intact examples of what is certainly a sailing vessel and probably associated with use on the canal systems. It's almost a hundred feet long and about 24 feet wide. Care should be taken by visiting divers to avoid disturbing and damaging many upright features that have stood the test of time.

The wreck is well known already; it features on local charts, but it has not previously been of great interest, since it lies in the path of frequent boat traffic and didn't have any line to it from shore. For ease of reference, it may be useful (borrowing the example of the KPH wreck) to refer to it as the KGH wreck, unless and until someone can provide a precise identity.

Visibility tonight was about 40 feet on the wreck and the water temperature about 64F.

'Ducking' and Diving...

Dodgy title refers to the fact that this morning the opportunity was presented to accompany Harold, POW's Mooring Director, and Tom Rutledge on a working visit to the Annie Falconer, which lies close to the False Ducks Island. A bumpy passage out and back was a small price to pay for a textbook dive on one of our signature wrecks. With a bottom temperature of 55F (13C) and visibility in excess of 60 feet (20m), there was plenty of time at the max depth of 78 feet (24m) to complete the replacement of a temporary mooring line, tour the site and find an abandoned mooring block just off the wreck to the NNE. Tom took some great shots, which are accessible on Ontario Diving Forum. BTW - for those who are wondering - Harold doesn't wear his drysuit constantly - just about 80% of the time....

Hannah handles operations...

Today's dive was dedicated to conducting research for Hannah Cole (Matt Cole's daughter) to complete a heritage project on the HMS Princess Charlotte, a War of 1812 wooden warship wreck lying on the bottom of Deadman's Bay. Hannah mustered 4 divers, including her father (pictured) to make a dive through the 14" (36cm) thick ice of the Bay and complete survey videos and measurements of the wreck. The party was blessed with excellent topside conditions (sunny, with maximum air temperatures of 7C (44F)). Frankly, for dry-suited divers, it was way too warm...

The water, on the other hand, fulfilled all expectations, showing 32F (0C) on the gauges.

Visibility below the ice was really good - in excess of 40 feet. All Hannah's tasking was successfully completed in two dives; each of about 25 minutes duration. A large, very sleepy turtle was left undisturbed on one of the wreck's main frames. The whole event was really satisfying. It's always important to have a good reason for a dive - and this one couldn't have been better.

More pictures can be viewed on the Club's Flickr site.

Oceans in peril...

Since all of us who dive have the interests of the World's waters at heart, a new report from America's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration makes worrying reading. NOAA researches indicate that the state of the World's oceans is worsening more quickly than earlier estimates indicated. The web page announcing the study results can be visited by clicking here.

Somefin to think about...

Many of our members went to see Sharkwater, the movie that publicised the plight of the World's sharks earlier in 2007. Browsing their website today I came across a great report from a group called Wildaid. It sets out most of the critical information about the amazing family of marine creatures that are the sharks.

If your holiday break gives you some time to read the Report, I guarantee that it will interest and inform you.