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.

The Ice Lady Cometh...

It must have been cold today - at least above the surface. Tracey provided some amusement for the rest of us by forming a pretty decent ice layer on her suit after exiting the water. It was only fortunate that the wind was relatively light and the sun shining brightly.

The dive, which Steve Chew, Jim and Tracey Dunfield and I completed was the standard 'once around the barge' from the basin of the Marine Museum. Timings varied from just under to just over 30 minutes in water showing a temperature of 38F (3C). The air temperature was on the minus side of zero at about -2C (28F) by the time we emerged. Visibility was poor by recent standards at something between 15 and 25 feet. Hardly suprising when you consider the high winds and heavy rain of the last day or two.

Steve had a great dive in a new drysuit - although pre-owned - it could have been made for him - as the pic shows.

Starry, starry night...

Not entirely evident in the picture - which does faithfully show the chill in the evening - were the stars shining brightly in a clear sky. But it may be more relevant to discuss the dive. Chris Columbus, Rob Kirkby, Jeremie Verville and I found the courage to venture (briefly) into the quarry tonight for a night dive. Briefly is accurate, because we turned the dive around at about 15 minutes when the chill got to at least two pairs of hands.

But those minutes gave us a chance to visit the cabin cruiser and the car - and to remark on the night-time presence of many Bluegills - not at all as bold by day. Undressing after the dive was not as daunting as we had expected. The wind had dropped, making the temperature of -7C (19F) a little more tolerable. It was certainly colder than the water temperature of 36F (2C). Visibility was a little disappointing, but at 35-40 feet, quite acceptable.

Back to the Quarry..

When it's a sunny day and the temperature's on the plus side of zero (just) what else should you do but go for a dive. That's what Dianne and I concluded this morning. We hit the quarry again to check out the artifacts and widen exploration a little. There are a couple of 'landmark' objects that I can add to my site plan now. There's still much work to do in touring all the farther reaches, so company will be welcome at any stage. For those who are interested, the visibility, despite the sunshine and dry spell overnight, remains at just 30-40 feet and the water temperature was 37F (3C).

Once more into the Beach...

Despite some strong winds and intermittent rain, Joan and I completed a local dive this morning at the quarry. The site impressed her on her first visit just as much as it had me last week. Although visibility was down at about 30-40 feet today, the fish were still abundant and the boats and car just as interesting. As we had discovered yesterday, the rain has one positive effect - to raise the water temperature. Today we recorded 37F (3C) - which compares well with last week's 35F (2C).

Caption Competition

We haven't had a caption competition before and when I saw this shot it just cried out for one. Just use the comments option to make your selection.

Three divers pictured were just some of the ten Club members who turned out for a Sunday morning expedition from the Marine Museum in wonderful conditions. Still conditions and occasional Sun made for easy preparation and gentle recovery. The water temperature was, astonishingly, warmer than last week - at 40F (4C). And the good news didn't end there - visibility was something like 40 feet - and more in places.

Well done to everyone who turned out - especially Lee, who elected to dive wet and managed a very creditable 30 minutes.

Heritage Symposium a great success

The second annual Limestone City Marine Heritage Symposium took place today and ten Club members participated; by far the largest party of any group represented on the day. The Symposium was flawlessly administered, generously catered and featured excellent speakers. Their subjects ranged from the fate of Herod's harbour in Caesarea to the Second World War wrecks off Newfoundland's Bell Island, with information about advanced technical exploration near Halifax and the survey of the 'Twisted Sisters' off the St Lawrence Seaway's Grenadier Island amongst other topics. The event's obvious success was a great tribute to local organisers working to support 'Preserve our Wrecks' - a Kingston-based non-profit body dedicated to the preservation and protection of shipwrecks near Kingston.

Wow! - no Zebra Mussels...

Today's dive was absolutely magical. I visited the quarry at Brule Road with Dan and Christopher and discovered a whole new diving experience in Kingston - a site free of Zebra Mussels. Add to that delightful feature the presence of a cabin cruiser, another smaller boat and an inverted car, as well as a sizeable shoal of Striped Bass - all in visibility that approached 100 feet, and you may understand my excitement.

There's not much depth - the lowest recorded was just 27 feet, but there are walls and boulders and some real features to the bottom contours. All of them make the dive interesting. For the record, the water temperature was a chilly 35F (2C) and the air temperature, with bright sunshine 7C (45F).

Is it really Winter..?

It’s hard to believe, with Sunshine streaming down and clear, blue skies, that it’s really Winter. But, while these conditions persist - dive on!

Dianne and I ventured out to the Barge by the Marine Museum this morning and had a really gentle and enjoyable dive. Visibility was in the order of 40 feet or more and the temperature had crept up a degree to 38F (3C) - precisely matching the air temperature above.

The pic is a frame grab from video taken towards the end of the dive, under the stern of the Henry. The light on the prop and rudder was beautiful, but doesn’t completely come through in this shot - oh, for a wide angle lens on the little camera...

Happy New (Dive) Year...

If it's January 1st, it must be time for a New Year's Day dive. That seemed to be the philosophy that attracted five divers to enter the water today at the Marine Museum. Whatever the background, Dan, Rob, Jim, Chris and Mike seemed to be undaunted by a cold wind and some relatively choppy water. After a night of high winds and some heavy rain, the visibility was quite poor - about 15 - 20 feet. It's now noticeable that the water temperature is slipping back steadily. Today, the low recorded was 37F (3C). The air temperature wasn't balmy either at 6C (43F). The unsettled conditions seemed to intimidate the marine life too. Only a few Gobies and the usual handful of Bass were spotted.

But the dive's the thing - and it felt good to christen the New Year with an early immersion.

An honourable mention must be given today to Christopher, who, despite being a little unwell, was a huge help to the dive party.

Happy New Year to one and all - Dive Safe...