shipwrecks at Tobermory

[Stoo]

Lot's of people dive there in wetsuits, but you really need a 7mm John, and a 7m jacket, plus a good hood, gloves, boots. By August, typically the thermocline pushes down to about 70' and the temp above that is often close to 50°F. Considering the relatively short time most divers spend at depth, that's comfy, especially when it's warm and sunny topside. I have a young friend who has been diving with me for the past three years and she has been in a poor-fitting 14mm and has survived deep dives to about 145', but she was frosted to the core. (And this girl modeled in a bathing suit in October... She's no whimp.)

Having said all this, in big ice years (like this) it can be cold well into the season. If the wind is blowing in the right direction, it is possibly to run into 38° water in 45 - 50' in August, but that's unusual.

If you are diving wet, bring some warm over-clothing to wear between dives, and bring a warm drink, even in August. Don't let the lack of a drysuit stop you from diving here... just come later in the season... August, September.

DISCLAIMER: I haven't been diving in Tobermory in a wetsuit for about 25 years, but then I'm a wuss. I also didn't swim once there last year (it was especially cold) and only a few times, at best, in any given summer.

PS: Speaking of the Grotto, this is a favorite pic I took there that is in DIVER Magazine this month. Note the wetsuit! ;-)

 

[Dhboner]

I used to dive Toby in a 7mm jumpsuit with no issues whatsoever (but then again I also did ice dives in a wetsuit) so it depends on your personal cold tolerance. I have to admit the second dive of the charter was never a lot of fun...putting that cold, wet, wetsuit back on after a nice warm surface interval. God I love my drysuit now

 

[Stoo]

Wearing a wetsuit in Tobermory, especially in the spring is a bit of a rite of passage. It is not the place to impress a lady friend while skinny dipping...

 

[SubMariner]

One word regarding Toby: DRYSUIT.

I now take you back to your regularly schedule thread, already in progress.

 

[Stoo]

Kelly at Diver's Den sent me this photo this morning. The boats went in yesterday, and the first charters are this weekend.

Watch your heads doing back-rolls...

 

[Jared0425]

Hell you should be able to see the Arabia from the surface. Rumor has it it you can see the Dunderburg from the surface where her decks are at 130 and the mud at 158. I paid the price by doing a deco dive last month and froze.

 

[Stoo]

It is that time of year where no deco has it's merits. My first dive last spring was on the Niagara in Tobermory. The ice had been out for literally hours and both of my computers read 33°F. I was in for about 50 minutes but was so cold I finally had to soak in a warm bath about 4 hours later to get warm... I decided it was time to get some new undies after that dive...

 

[NorthernPike]

Do tell: What undies were you using, and what did you find that was warmer?

I like to wait until the ice is truly out of the vicinity. If its only out for hours, a shift in the wind can quickly bring it back.
Not a problem if its a slushy mass, (slush dives are great fun!) but if its hard pans, it can be deadly.
Such an event cost a diver his life on Lake Simcoe several years ago.

 

[Token]

Excellent thread -- I'll be in Tobermory in early September [right after Labour Day] and I'm hoping my semi-dry/hooded vest/Thermolution shirt combo will be enough.

Is this a good place for me to do a Wreck Diving specialty?

 

[NAUIWOWI]

I don't know if this diver/photographer Jerzy Kowalczuk is on the forum, but here is one of his pictures from diving Tobermory within the last week or so....... still looks cold to me..








from Wetpixel Underwater Photography forum, by Jerzy Kowalczuk