Going to be visiting the Pontiac, MI area

[kenpo1245]

Im going to be visiting the Pontiac, Mi area in the middle of July. I am an AOW diver and enjoy to dive anywhere. I have only spent time in the waer in Florida so diving in MI would be a first.

Does anyone have any suggestions on where to go or what dive shops or charters r local to Pontiac. I would not mind diving some wrecks in the lakes.

I would also be looking for anyone interested is joining.

Thanks in advance

[Busdiver]

Howdy. What are your exact dates? You are a few hours away from any of the really go wreck/lake diving. If you want you are welcome to join us for the St. Clair River or head down to one of the quarries on the boarder. Just PM if you are interested.

[bladephotog]

You won't be that far from Port Sanilac. Try Rec & Tec Dive Charters. Great dive op and great wrecks in that area. For a look at some of the wrecks you could visit check out my site and view the Great Storm of 1913 show and the Mary Alice B. slide show.

[kenpo1245]

hi
I do not have the dates confirmed yet...but should be around the 13 to the19..

Next question is i only have a 3mm wet suit.. and im not sure if the water in July is warm enough for that or if i should buy a 5 or 7mm.. a dry suit is out of the question at this time. I way be better off diving a smaller lake for this trip,, if the water in the bigger lakes will be too cold.

and thks again ill pm u when i have the dates confirmed.

[BrewingDiver]

I still dive a 7mm (2 layer of 7mm each farmer john) here, and some people call me crazy. I don't think you will like the diving in a 3mm : )

[diver_paula]

Rec & Tec would be a great way to check out the wrecks in the Great Lakes. Bruno's shop would be another.

For lake diving closer to Pontiac the best bet would be to meet up with one of us on the board. It wouldn't be wreck diving but it would be Michigan diving. Probably on a river or one of the 'local' lakes.

Dive shops that do weekday non-charter diving that I can think of off hand are Sea The World in Farmington, MI and Adventure Diving in Brighton. I'll also check my local club's non-wreck diving calendar to see if we have anything scheduled for the week you are here once you know what that is.

Paula

[cldwdiver]

You might also want to check out the Monroe Quarry.
Here is the thread about it here on Scubaboard with links to their web site.

Monroe Dive Center - Quarry (MI)

[rickydazla]

hi
I do not have the dates confirmed yet...but should be around the 13 to the19..

Next question is i only have a 3mm wet suit.. and im not sure if the water in July is warm enough for that or if i should buy a 5 or 7mm.. a dry suit is out of the question at this time. I way be better off diving a smaller lake for this trip,, if the water in the bigger lakes will be too cold.

and thks again ill pm u when i have the dates confirmed.

I drive through Pontiac on my way to work at Bruno's Dive Shop every day...

We'll have our charter boat in the water up at Port Sanilac and will be running trips most weekends by that time and will also be doing weekly Wednesday river dives.

You'll freeze your old fellas off in a 3mm! Although in actual fact the great lakes are generally warmer than the inland lakes. They're also clearer and a lot more interesting, especially if you like wrecks! We've just got a huge stock of 7/5mm semi-dry suits for rental which you'll need for the waters up here and we can rent everything else you need to.

Check out our website: Bruno's Dive Shop - Diving the Great Lakes since 1968

Cheers


Rick

[CMAN]

I agree with Rick that you should consider renting a 7MM. While you could get by diving the St. Clare River in a 3MM in July, I have seen it anywhere from 60 to 75 degrees (no thermocline) at that time of year with the water running a little warmer the farther down stream you go. Inland lakes are a little boring and the thermocline starts around 10-20 ft. and goes from 70 to mid to upper 50 degrees pretty fast, so a 3MM is out unless you stay shallow. And as Rick pointed out Lake Huron is generally warmer(60-65 on the surface and thermocline will vary depending on the wind direction) and I have seen the vis anywhere from 15 to 70. A charter to some of our shipwrecks is also a good idea because you will see far more interesting stuff than you will find in inland lakes and you can enjoy the company of other divers.