Anyone here going on the outing to Lake Ouachita in Arkansas with Tucker's Dive Shop in Grand Prarie? I signed up this weekend, but going it alone. Hoping to find a buddy to dive with there or before. They seem to have a large diving club out of that shop and this will be my first run with them and my first big dive outing since Cozumel. Pretty excited about it. Anyone got any tips for diving that lake in late September?
Lake Ouachita - 9/24-9/25
- Thread starter Jarrett
- Start date
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Crazyduck
Contributor
Hey Jarrett,
I am planning on attending.
This is probably one of the more interesting dive trips that is made in the area.
Water temp is GREAT, gets colder the deeper you go. There are thermoclines like every other lake. But as long as you dont plan anything really deep- no worries. Last visit I started in a semi-dry and by the second dive I was in a 3mm.
While digging for Crystals I stay in about 5 ft of water. My last dive was 90minutes at 5ft and had an absolute BLAST. 5mm will cover all of the bases. I would buy a simple pair of gloves from Home Depot to waft with or your fingers can get pretty raw digging and wafting in the rocks. Plus, bring a nice goodie bag for the Crystals- last time I went I had a good handful all sizes.
When diving the area we had excellent vis and it was fun spotting the fresh water Jelly fish (non-stinging.) Plus, the group has boats so we dive some pretty neat places.
I would say bring everything you need in the way of dive gear and ask Bruce if you have any specific questions.
We usually have a desert theme and that can get interesting. Camping is excellent, and a few people have trailers. Oh, and the scenery is great.
Plan on having fun and some excellent diving.
If you have any questions- please feel free to give me a yell.
Andrew
I am planning on attending.
This is probably one of the more interesting dive trips that is made in the area.
Water temp is GREAT, gets colder the deeper you go. There are thermoclines like every other lake. But as long as you dont plan anything really deep- no worries. Last visit I started in a semi-dry and by the second dive I was in a 3mm.
While digging for Crystals I stay in about 5 ft of water. My last dive was 90minutes at 5ft and had an absolute BLAST. 5mm will cover all of the bases. I would buy a simple pair of gloves from Home Depot to waft with or your fingers can get pretty raw digging and wafting in the rocks. Plus, bring a nice goodie bag for the Crystals- last time I went I had a good handful all sizes.
When diving the area we had excellent vis and it was fun spotting the fresh water Jelly fish (non-stinging.) Plus, the group has boats so we dive some pretty neat places.
I would say bring everything you need in the way of dive gear and ask Bruce if you have any specific questions.
We usually have a desert theme and that can get interesting. Camping is excellent, and a few people have trailers. Oh, and the scenery is great.
Plan on having fun and some excellent diving.
If you have any questions- please feel free to give me a yell.
Andrew
Jarrett:
I will also be going on this 2 day dive outing,,,,should be fun.
How does it work on group dives like this when you don't have a buddy going with you? Do you just dive in groups or agree on buddies when you get there? This will most likely be my first group dive when I don't have a buddy coming with me and I am trying to get an idea of how that works.
Jarrett:
In most cases there will be other 'non buddy' divers there as there are on many group dive situations. In some cases you may go as a three-some buddy team......or in the case of DM lead trips you might pair up with the DM for the dive. It is never really a problem getting a dive buddy. Let the trip leader know of your situation and they will help pair you up with another diver(s).
Froglady
Contributor
Jarrett:
Give us more details about this trip. How far is the drive up? It sounds interesting. Crazyduck mentioned crystals at 5ft. Is that where most people stay around?
I dont know much about it. I heard about it via Tucker's Dive Shop. I've never been to this lake, nor on a trip with their dive group. Heck, I've never dove from a boat before! All new for me. I think its about a 5-6 hour drive out of DFW. I spoke with them yesterday and they only had 9 spots left for the trip so might want to call them quickly if interested.
diveblondy
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The trip is about 6-7 hours or so - mostly Hwy miles (I20) out of the metroplex - then you shoot up to Hot Springs. Everyone leaves out on Friday about noonish - either set up camp that evening or get yourself a room in town. Diving starts Sat. morning - you head out on pantoon boats and head to "Zebra Rock" which is where you will find crystals that Andrew (Crazyduck) was speaking of. There are loads of them starting from the surface down. Some are visible - most just take a bit of uncovering of sediment to find them. Come back late afternoon and cook out and hang out. Sunday you have the option of heading back out for diving again until noon. Then everyone packs up and head back to DFW. I think the trip is $60/per person; but check with them on that figure. You would need to contact Bruce or Lori at Tucker's. www.tuckersdiveshop.com.
We are also doing a trip up there over Laborday weekend if you are intrested in going all of the details are athttp://www.jwscuba.com should be a great time
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