jpedwards
Contributor
Some call her 'Norlond', others 'Norland' but most agree she was lost in November of 1922 after springing a leak. All the accounts I've read show no loss of crew or passengers, thankfully.
Today she rests about a mile and a half SxSW of the bell buoy in 60 feet of water. She's pretty broken up due to salvage operations involving a clamshell excavator, but still an interesting dive.
This was a dive arranged by Badger State Dive Club to help orient those new to wreck diving. Each of us was paired with an experienced diver, which added a lot to the enjoyment of the dive, combining the usual joking with a lot of practical advice. Thanks to the club, Glen Goebel for organizing the trip, and of course to Jerry and Sandy Guyer, the excellent skipper and crew of the Len-Der.
Since the soap jugs on the mooring line were missing, Len-Der searched around for a few minutes and dropped anchor shortly after 7pm. Seas were calm with about a half foot of chop and very little swell; the sky was partly sunny and warm at 78. We followed the anchor line to arrive not far from the wooden rudderpost at the stern - a neat sight and the highest remaining portion of the wreck. Just below is the propeller, still recognizable after over 80 years. The boilers near midships were the next stop. They're filled with silt but you can still look inside. It was cool to swim around the perimeter of the hulk, looking under her timbers for burbot and such. Bottom temp was a balmy 54Suunto with visibility somewhere between 20 and 30 feet.
After 30 minutes we proceeded up the anchor rhode for our short stops, surfacing just as the sun's lower limb was touching the Milwaukee skyline. On the way in we were saluted by a firewoks show on the lakefront. Another excellent boat dive.
Today she rests about a mile and a half SxSW of the bell buoy in 60 feet of water. She's pretty broken up due to salvage operations involving a clamshell excavator, but still an interesting dive.
This was a dive arranged by Badger State Dive Club to help orient those new to wreck diving. Each of us was paired with an experienced diver, which added a lot to the enjoyment of the dive, combining the usual joking with a lot of practical advice. Thanks to the club, Glen Goebel for organizing the trip, and of course to Jerry and Sandy Guyer, the excellent skipper and crew of the Len-Der.
Since the soap jugs on the mooring line were missing, Len-Der searched around for a few minutes and dropped anchor shortly after 7pm. Seas were calm with about a half foot of chop and very little swell; the sky was partly sunny and warm at 78. We followed the anchor line to arrive not far from the wooden rudderpost at the stern - a neat sight and the highest remaining portion of the wreck. Just below is the propeller, still recognizable after over 80 years. The boilers near midships were the next stop. They're filled with silt but you can still look inside. It was cool to swim around the perimeter of the hulk, looking under her timbers for burbot and such. Bottom temp was a balmy 54Suunto with visibility somewhere between 20 and 30 feet.
After 30 minutes we proceeded up the anchor rhode for our short stops, surfacing just as the sun's lower limb was touching the Milwaukee skyline. On the way in we were saluted by a firewoks show on the lakefront. Another excellent boat dive.
