So what do you do with 10 divers after all the training is done. Go diving of course and yesterday we did just that. Off to the Marsh which was supposed to be the Comet but due to some waves which made the jug hard to see we stubbled across the Marsh first. After lots of discussion and time and depth lectures off we went.
We got treated to some good visibility and with the good control of the gang the wreck saw no silt. Marsh pics like always here.
Then off to the Comet and man oh man at least 60 feet of vis and fish in the millions or so. I took Ross as buddy on this one have being on it a few days before knew what to expect. So everyone got in the water and I took ross down 5 mins before the rest and showed him what diving is all about. For those that havent seen a wreck in Lake Ontario covered in fish have a look at this video clip.
Thanks for all that helped, assisted or took part in the last couple months of dive training it was a long road but like always the diving make up for in the end. Ross your a good sport and I wish you the best in the future, you can come diving with me at any time.
So the weekend is here and it’s cold as winter. However I have a bunch of students that still wanted to dive in the quarry and lake. First up Thursday Michelle and Scott finished off the OW program in the Quarry.
Then Friday off to the Comet and Davie for the final dives of Kelsey’s AOW course and she nails the drills like an old pro. Congrats to her. Then for her wreck dive she choose the comet and Michelle joined her as I took photos of the pair of them, The coolest thing about the dive was the appearance of about a million fish give or take one or two.
Congrats Scott and Michelle for finishing the OW course and Congrats to Kelsey for nailing the AOW course. It was cold and hard but it paid off in spades in your skill levels.
For the first time in a while I played with my video editor and made a short video of the students in the quarry this past month. I still have about 20 more students to finish off this month so hopefully it will be still doable.
So Saturday we dove the Comet and Marsh lots of fun and two of the advanced class finished up. Like troopers they have have decided to stick around and finish off their mates. Some of them have even completed upwards of 20 dives for this cert.
Sunday came and we all got our fill of turkey and family fun then back to the lake on Monday for more diving.
First Dive was the Kattie Eccles. Dark and clear the wreck and offering lots of new goodies as divers keep looking off the stern and sides finding artifacts and placing them on the wreck. Off to the Sheyboygan for more diving and then on the way back in I decided a third one on the Comet was in order. Afterwards we met up with the zodiac crowd and off to home for some well deserved rest
Again congrats to the students you worked hard and earned id.
So I get ready to take out some students for open water check outs and I state to one of the advance candidates to work on skills hovering. Well much to my surprise my OW students take note and complete all of their drills hoovering. Well done Kelcy and Michelle. Part 2 next week
I got on the bike with Sean and drove around the county for the afternoon stopping in Napanne for lunch. We decided on the chinese restaurant called NEW YORK dining. Well the service was kinda old fashion and right out of a bad movie. Whadda want, whadda like no manners needed but the food was plentiful and ok.
Napanee was in full swing of the Halloween spirit and merchants had started dressing up dummies and lining main street with them. Pictures are here.
So looking for some fun in Kingston try Fort Fright at Fort Henry lots of stuff to see and enjoy, I am only going to make the trip once this year making my trip total 2 for this year vice the 12 or so I normally make, 5 bucks for parking is a little steep. Pictures here.
Soon I will finally get a break but sometimes being busy helps the mind for the time being. I haven’t much time to myself the last couple of months and now am feeling the run down feeling I suffer from. At least I have been able to get the students trained and ready to go for the upcoming school year classes being held in Florida and Bahamas.
So this weekend is the start of the end of the student season and off to get some personal diving in as well. The best part of this year has been the absence of the local clowns raising, stirring and spreading rumours.
I have also open a few more sites for the diving public and plan on revealing a few more before the boats come out as well for shore diving access providing we get the line in for safety reasons.
This class was just like the good ole days and the students learned and made the course for me. Ross who took the blunt of the punishment was a solid stand up guy for the weekend and almost became the diver of the weekend, but I have to give that to the 2 girls who on the last dive just nailed it. For the AOW students I shedded a tear of pride when Serge was flat and knees up watching the students go through what is now known as the circle of death.
The circle of death is the name of the new line laid in the quarry, what I have been doing is bringing them to the small hole at 8 feet. The start off doing a fin pivot and when ready to swim follow the line, stopping at the car hood, toilet, boat, car, boat, boat, boat, table all doing a drill at each stop. By the third time around all where hovering and flat.
Thanks for making my weekend good as the winter sets in I will reflect on it.
So we decided to up the ante and add some more bang for the buck what we decided to do was after the OW checkouts was to have the students and community at large attend a free buoyancy clinic in the local training hole. I had instructors and DM’s from other agencies as well attend to give input.
As well we have started constructing a platform to teach skills on keeping the students off the wrecks. Sort of a no touch policy from the start. So if your visiting the quarry bring some milk crates to build on to the platform.
The night went well and all the students learned at least one new thing, and the quarry is still at 70 so lots of diving left there. Lots of photos of the quarry here.
So after a very busy week of diving 21 of them btw yesterday we headed to the store and I took a few good customers out to go diving. Much to the shirgrin of the operators which actually turned a little ugly and embarrassing for them as now more regulars are keeping away due to the banging of the help.
I had forgotten a dose or two which I thought shouldn’t have any effect but yet another reminder that I lead a medicated life to stay off the edge and just enough to life day to day. The unfortunate part of this is that some people are just a little bit slower then everybody else and refuse to believe that people can suffer a mental illness and not function properly in certain aspects in life.
So the nightmares returned and the midnight strolls around the house are back as well as the raging blood pressure leading to more restrictions on what I can do and will do for the time being.
I used to be heavily involved in wreck preservation and for two weeks I posted pictures of peoples art sketched into a historical wreck which for 100 years had no autographs from it’s owners, now the mast is covered in graffiti. Guess what no response from the peanut gallery on an action plan.
I guess things only get done if someone else is making money other then me.
Actually it’s the new name for the Burle Road Quarry, a popular swimming hole and dive training spot in Kingston Ontario, I conduct a lot of training in the quarry and all of my students can attest to it. Today while working in the quarry Dan the owner announce that we can think of assist him in making the quarry better for all to use.
So the first dive was something to remember but by today on the fifth they were doing their best and looking a little like divers, so off till the next couple of weds to practice then off on the boats for a few to finish up and Kingston’s newest divers will be ready.
So now that Chris has finished his tech one training allowing him to dive mix gas and giving me an off training season dive buddy we headed to the Kattie Eccles for a dive.
The Katie Eccles has been known about by a select group of divers for years but was only opened to the public in 2002 due to the fact the numbers where taken by diver and published or the old guard of kingson would have never allowed locals on it. More profitable for taking out of towners then to build your own community.
If I had to choose a wreck to find or build in Kingston one of my choice would be one with the bow of the Eccles on the stern of the Sheyboygan. The stern is busted wide open so she must have come down stern first and in doing so the Bow escaped the damage most get. Unfortunately the first year of diving the very front of the bow was damaged. No matter what happened or why she still is a beauty.
When getting to the end of the wreck being on 30/30 with a clear head I spotted a squarish object near a couple of rocks. Upon checking it out I turned out to be a sewing machine from the 1920′s, i placed it with the other artifacts and a little research netted that it was most likely for repairing sails. So the wreck gets another artifact for all to enjoy.
