Brockville for a n00b - Oct 26/27

[fiveupstove]

Hi all, planning to possibly be in Brockville/Kingston the weekend of Oct 26-27, since this would be my first dive in the area and relatively inexperienced (30 total dives, half in cold water), are there any operators offering guided dives, boat or shore, that I should look up? Most of the charters I've looked up seem to be for groups of experienced divers. Thanks in advance.

 

[flots am]

Hi all, planning to possibly be in Brockville/Kingston the weekend of Oct 26-27, since this would be my first dive in the area and relatively inexperienced (30 total dives, half in cold water), are there any operators offering guided dives, boat or shore, that I should look up? Most of the charters I've looked up seem to be for groups of experienced divers. Thanks in advance.

I haven't seen any guided tours, but you should check around and see if you can fiind someone going to the Keystorm. It's a nice wreck in the middle of the river, and starts around 20', with the prop down around 110'. There's cool stuff to see at any depth.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

The St Lawrence is really not the place for inexperienced divers without an experienced buddy that knows them. You don't really hire a guide to look out for you. If you were doing a class with an instructor that is also another matter. I would not want an instabuddy for dives there.

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[gcarter]

There are actually some good / easy shore dives suitable for an OW diver. The Conestoga (Cardinal) is in an easy 50' offshore in 30' of water. Current is very light. SS Conestoga

The Rothesay (Prescott) is also in about 30' of water, 300' from shore with a good line running to it. Current on this wreck is also very light. SS Rothesay Here is a video running down the south (US) side of the wreck I took on my birthday Rothesay on Vimeo

Also in Prescott is the scuba park just off of the docks Divers Playground Really not an exciting dive, but it is hard to get in trouble here.

Other than these, most other shore dives will be of the drift variety in current. You would want a guide. Many of these are considered advanced dives.

The same is true of most wrecks reachable by boat. Current can be an issue, and many are deeper than you may be comfortable / trained for.

Here are another couple of links:

Neptune: diving in Ontario

Diver Guides | Save Ontario Shipwrecks

Scuba Diving in Ottawa, Kingston and Brockville | Sharky's Scuba

I have done a number of dives with Luc and can recommend him. Martin Dive Charters - Our charters

I don't know when he stops for the season. There are, I am sure, other good operations in Brockville as well.

Depending on work & weather, I might be willing to do a few tanks on the Rothesay or the Conestoga that weekend with you. Be prepared with at least 7mm and hood / gloves, I would be wearing my 7mm + 7mm shorty.

Good luck.

 

[meagicano]

I haven't seen any guided tours, but you should check around and see if you can fiind someone going to the Keystorm. It's a nice wreck in the middle of the river, and starts around 20', with the prop down around 110'. There's cool stuff to see at any depth.

The Keystorm is a fantastic wreck but I wouldn't recommend it to the OP. He has no experience in the St Lawrence, where currents can vary in strength on a day to day basis, and he has only 30 dives. October is the end of our wetsuit season - some go later, but these are generally more experienced divers - so the cold, the depth and the current could add up to a bad situation.

Jim is correct in that you want an experienced buddy and gcarter offered some excellent suggestions of sites to visit. The Conestoga is very close to shore and easy to get to - plus there's a swim against the current which helps to warm you up a bit in the cold water. If you take him up on his offer he (and his son, if he's around) will prove to be an excellent buddy.

If you're in the area next year, get ahold of one of the scuba clubs through the shops in Ottawa. They all dive Wednesday nights in the summer and there are offerings on other nights and weekends. I dive with Sharky's which has an active group - that's how I know gcarter - but all of the clubs are welcoming and fairly active.

 

[gcarter]

Side note / hijack: have you been wet out there yet? Drysuit?

 

[meagicano]

Side note / hijack: have you been wet out there yet? Drysuit?

No. That's probably why I'm so cranky. I've been in Newfoundland for the past two weeks and all this family time is starting to add up. I need some compressed air therapy.

Will get some diving in once I'm off the Rock.

 

[flots am]

The Keystorm is a fantastic wreck but I wouldn't recommend it to the OP. He has no experience in the St Lawrence, where currents can vary in strength on a day to day basis, and he has only 30 dives. October is the end of our wetsuit season - some go later, but these are generally more experienced divers - so the cold, the depth and the current could add up to a bad situation.

The's little current on the leeward side of the keystorm, however I wouldn't get into any water without a drysuit now.

If the OP can get across the border, The Islander behind the hospital in Alexandria Bay is a really nice, easy dive.

 

[meagicano]

The's little current on the leeward side of the keystorm, however I wouldn't get into any water without a drysuit now.

If the OP can get across the border, The Islander behind the hospital in Alexandria Bay is a really nice, easy dive.

I hear you on that! Although I spent the whole summer feeling cold in a 7mm with a 1mm hooded vest - too many drifts, I suppose. Or I'm getting old and finding everything cold now.

I was more thinking of the surface currents & getting down the mooring line on the Keystorm. I haven't been at depth where current was an issue but surface currents can vary.

 

[scubadiver888]

Hi all, planning to possibly be in Brockville/Kingston the weekend of Oct 26-27, since this would be my first dive in the area and relatively inexperienced (30 total dives, half in cold water), are there any operators offering guided dives, boat or shore, that I should look up? Most of the charters I've looked up seem to be for groups of experienced divers. Thanks in advance.

+1 Jim Lapenta. Diving in the St. Lawrence is something you want to do with someone who has been diving there a while. Last insta-buddy I saw out there got on our boat. We had two groups, my group and another group. The other group had a dive instructor with a bunch of certified students from his shop. The experienced divers from that group helped the student divers from that group. When the solo diver asked for someone to buddy with him the other group made it very clear they would not buddy with him. One of the instructors in my group agreed to be the guys buddy. After the dive we all made it VERY clear the boat should have never let him on without a buddy and we wouldn't be using that boat again.

By the way, the diver got in some serious trouble including running out of air but the instructor who volunteered to be his insta-buddy saved him.

You might be able to go to a dive shop in the area and join them. That is, you pay the shop to join their group and they paid for the boat and tank fills. You might be able to find a group on Ontario Diving.