Diving in Toronto

[JBFG]

So I'm moving to TO this summer for work.
I'm wondering where the cool diving kids hang out.

What are the good shops?
Where are the local diving spots and what can you see?

 

[Grey Goose]

In the GTA, not much. Humber West is the local spot. ~35’, with visibility varying from 3’ to 60’, more commonly 10-15’. It has lines and a sunken 20’ shell of a boat.

Hamilton area, about an hour south west, has Gulliver lake, which is about 25’. Niagara river is another spot close by. See a local St Catherine’s dive shop list of locations here: Local Dive Sites Ontario & the Great Lakes

Dive shops are varied in GTA. I live in West end so Aquarius is my local shop. North of the city in Richmond Hill is Scuba 2000.

Local clubs have pool nights and organize spring/summer dives: Ontario Underwater Explorers (Etobicoke Olympium pool), Etobicoke Underwater Club and Scarborough Underwater Club at Pan Am pool (UofT). Each club has a slightly different focus. Check Facebook and internet for these clubs.

 

[Tournesol2000]

Aqua sub scuba in Richmond Hill are great and have dive trips up in Tobermory.
Also try CANSAC. That is the dive club I am a member of. Great people and have lots of dive trips planned this sumner

 

[Hoag]

I live about 100km west of Toronto in the KW/Cambridge/Guelph area. I have found The Dive Academy in Oakville to be great. The owner Dean is very knowledgeable not only about diving but also U/W Photography. When I made the transition to BP/W, he helped get me set up. If you are in the west end of the GTA, I highly recommend his shop.

 

[Hoag]

Oh, one other thing. Every spring, typically in February, is the Toronto Outdoor Adventure Show out at the International Centre on Airport Road. That is a great place to meet the people from most of the dive shops in the GTA as well as reps from a lot of the destinations.

 

[vam]

I live about half way between Toronto and Barrie, so I do most of my local diving in Lake Simcoe. Our most popular spot at Shanty Bay has a number of mildly interesting things to see and you can get close to 100' of depth. Wednesday nights are most popular. A $130 permit is required between this weekend (Victoria Day) and Labour Day long weekend inclusive for parking. Many people drop off their gear and park close by instead.

 

[rhwestfall]

Road trips to Lake Erie, and the St. Lawrence....

 

[grf88]

Closest wrecks are Lyman Davis and Sligo out of Humber Bay and the Tiller out of Port Dalhousie which is near St. Catherines. Charters are available for these wrecks and are worthwhile dives.

 

[Anthony A.]

I live about half way between Toronto and Barrie, so I do most of my local diving in Lake Simcoe. Our most popular spot at Shanty Bay has a number of mildly interesting things to see and you can get close to 100' of depth. Wednesday nights are most popular. A $130 permit is required between this weekend (Victoria Day) and Labour Day long weekend inclusive for parking. Many people drop off their gear and park close by instead.

I have a friend who has a cottage near friday harbour. If he takes me out with his boat, do i still need a permit? And are there specific dive-only spots or can i dive anywhere as long as i have a dive flag and float?

 

[vam]

I have a friend who has a cottage near friday harbour. If he takes me out with his boat, do i still need a permit? And are there specific dive-only spots or can i dive anywhere as long as i have a dive flag and float?

The permit I mentioned is just a parking permit for Oro Medonte, which is the municipality that contains Shanty Bay. No permit is required for diving. There are no dive-only spots that I'm aware of, but there won't be much to see unless you're diving a known wreck. A group of us once managed to find a boat called "Popa's Paycheque" with a rowboat and GPS but I mostly just do shore dives in the area. The other two popular nearby sites are Johnson's Beach and Centennial Beach both in Barrie. Normally they both offer pay parking but last year parking at Johnson's was restricted to residents due to construction.

Friday Harbour is near Big Bay Point, which used to be the main dive site in the area, but parking has been residents only for a few years now, so the "stuff" all got moved across to Shanty.

For Popa's Paycheque we used these coordinates: GeoDiving.com - Papas Paycheque

You can find a number of other coordinates nearby from there. I know the Neilson is popular but I haven't seen it. Hopefully this year! I know two groups planning to dive it this season.