Kingston moorings

[knives]

I hear the GLUE and POW guys are busy taking the lines down on the wrecks today...I hope they have some pics to show us and I want to hear some dive details...
I am home with a wicked cold and could not make it....Man I hate sitting out a dive....!!!;-0

Please guys ,tell me how was it?:confused:

[divedude]

It sucks to have a cold :(
I know I have one too so I couldn't dive.
I went down to the NTD shop for the latest info.
All Kingston Moorings are down except the Cornwall and Glendora
Some video work is being done on them then they will be dropped.

[Tom R]

We also had a boat of "Freaks"

Tom

[Eric__U]

It really sux to have a cold. It seems like everyone has one these days. I know i had to stay out of the water this weeked. :(

[Warren_L]

Big Thanks to Dan M and Tom R at Northern Tech Divers. You guys rule!

Mucho gracias for the free pass today in exchange for us helping you guys with the mooring lines. If you ever need a hand again, you know who to call...

And thanks to Wayne P for getting us out and about (and to Harold for his power boost).

Warren

[Chris Red]

I agree Warren, it was Fantastic!

You folks missed out on a fabulous day!
We dove the Munson and the City of Sheboygan, both simply amazing wrecks with so much to see - I have got to take that Nitrox course.

The company was great too! With just the three of us divers we received the royal treatment. In depth wreck orientations and service - Wow.

I just have to share this amazing trick with you! I was having a bit of a challenge suiting up for the second dive, my wet jacket sleeves would not slide up my arms, Captain Wayne had the perfect trick for it. Heaven! Suddenly my sleeve lifted into perfect position and my arm was warm and toasty! I was so delighted with this trick that ... but I'm drifting off topic (as usual). ;)

The Munson was a wooden steam powered dregding barge and now rests in 115 feet of water 10 minutes out of Conlins Bay. The upper deck greets you with a nifty collection of artifacts found around the wreck; crockery, a large frying pan and other odds and ends. Laying just off the bow is the huge dredging bucket. Most of the lower deck walls have been removed, which makes penetrating this wreck very easy. The time we had available only allowed for a swim around. I'll definitely be back to check out more.

The City of Sheboygan a three masted wooden schooner in her day, now sits in 99 feet of water out in the exposed lake, making her a bit of a trek to get to, but oh so worthwhile! She sits upright, her masts have fallen, her decking is fairly intact, her large holds afford easy entry and there are lots of goodies to see on her, with very few Zebra mussels.

There were these amazing little fish - I think they were called Gobbies, not a native fish to the lakes, and only found on the bottom, they seem to slink and dart around on surfaces like aquatic mice.

Thanks to Warren and Cliff for being excellent buddies and finally a HUGE vote of thanks to Tom from Northern Tech Divers and Capt. Wayne for taking us along to help out today! :)

[Tom R]

Well we dropped the moorings in Kingston yesterday, A couple of weeks ago when the day was finally decided a suggestion was made to allow the people that booked charters that day to give them a gift. The OFWF (Ontario Fresh Water Freaks), GLUE (Great Lakes Underwater Explorers (http://www.northerntechdiver.com/club)) and the new manager of KDS Kanata Diving Supply (http://www.kanatadivingsupply.com/) showed up and were informed that the day was on POW (Preserve Our Wrecks (http://www.gtcs.org/pow.html) ) and NTD (Northern Tech Diver). They all took it well and decided that free diving more that likely better than no diving.

The crews were split into two and briefed by Jim Brandeau (Dive Dude) POW’s interim mooring director on what to look for on the lines and which ones were still moored. The equipment was loaded into the Seaducer along with members of GLUE and KDS and they proceeded to dropped the mooring on 6 as well as run the line between 6 and X completing the traverse,(this task will be completed on May 15th / 16th during the raise the moorings weekend). As well as dropping the moorings on the Davie, Marsh and Graveyard, then taking a break by joining the other boat for converstation.

The Ashley-Dawn was loaded with the OFWF and the Munson and Wolfe Islander II were on tap for the day, completing the task at hand and learning a new skill was up to bat for Warren and Christine on the Munson. After the first dive and some general discussion mixed with some calm weather on the lake, it was then decided to make the run to the City of Sheyboyagan. After that we took a break and allowed the Seaducer to practice his boat recovery skills.

On behalf of the President of POW a big thanks to; OFWF (Chris Red, Warren and Cliff) and members of GLUE.

Tom

[knives]

:) well I am so happy to hear it was a good day...
of course any day diving is a good day!

Good job guys....sorry i missed it...;-0

[simonh]

I just wanted to send a big thank you to Tom and Dan of NTD for the gift of a charter this past Saturday - having the opportunity to join in on the fun to be had removing thmooringe lines and practising our deep-water rescue and auxilliary power supply installation skills on Wayne's boat was well worth the time spent.

It's great to see Ontario shop owners being consistently giving- thanks again for a great day of diving and a wonderful send-off to the boat-diving season!

[Chris Red]

Cool links there Tom!

I was wonderin how they manouvered those amazing mooring blocks into place so nicely! Now I know!

Even more than that I now know how much thought and effort goes into preserving a true treasure! The wrecks of the Great Lakes.

It's comforting to know what a group of dedicated 'volunteers' can do, compared to turning the area into a Park... which to my mind is a less desirable option, you've created a symbiotic relationship where everyone wins.

:blfish:
:rfish:

[Tom R]

Some photos on line finally.

http://northerntechdiver.com/gallery/mooringnov2003/mooringnov2003.php

Tom

[SubMariner]

Thanks for posting the pics, Tom.

Good on ya, OFFs... great job! :thumb:

Makes me homesick. ;-0

[Warren_L]

Cool pics Tom! Thanks for sharing.

Warren

[Eric__U]

good story and pics. Any boats still going out or are the or are the wrecks done for the year?

eric

[Warren_L]

That was the last weekend. Boats are out of the water for the season. There's always next year .... raising of the moorings set for May 15/16 weekend, I believe.

[d33ps1x]

I heard there are stilla few wrecks moored in Brockville and a few boats available to go out. Not sure where though.

Maybe someone from the area can comment on it?

[Chris Red]

Thanks for sharing Tom,
We really enjoyed the opportunity, and the diving.
You can count me in for Mooring raising.

[FreeFloat]

AFAIK all the buoys have been dropped that are going to be, and all the boats hauled. None of the LDSs think any are still active this time of year anyhow.

[Tom R]

None of the LDSs think any are still active this time of year anyhow.

Actually the moorings were dropped in Kingston as per Insurance companies wishes, you wouldn't want you LDS to put you on a boat that carries no insurance would you. There is a lot of people still diving.

Tom

[d33ps1x]

The winds of November. Blah. I should get back into sailboarding for a month or two. Good time of the year for that.

[Chris Red]

I have heard from a reliable source that Surfing on the Great Lakes is excellent this time of year... right up until the water gets harder than the beach ;)

[d33ps1x]

Yup. Used to do it into December every year then right on to skiiing...Nowadays the motto is snowboard Saturday and dive on Sunday.
:eek: