Quarries - What's up with that?

[WeRtheOcean]

So, I've been watching YouTube videos about diving in quarries, and I don't get it. A few of them have some fish, and some algal mats, but certainly not to the extent that I have seen in, say, Fishing With Luiza's snorkel trip in a river. Mostly, what I see is abandoned cars and other land-based junk, like visiting an underwater junkyard. If everything I can see in a quarry dive is something I can also see in a junkyard on land, why would I go to the trouble of diving there? What have I missed in these videos?

 

[NorCalDM]

I think for some it is the only local option they have to dive on a regular basis not everybody can afford to travel and dive. Also not everybody is lucky enough to live close enough to the ocean to dive in it regularly.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

For those divers who are landlocked as I once was, they are a place to train, keep your skills up and try out new gear in a controlled environment. Some of us love to dive so much that anywhere underwater is better than not diving at all. Many of them also stock fish so that there is also life to see down there.

Having come from the Midwest the quarries were an important place to fine tune our skills and prepare for Great Lakes or Ocean diving. Also many quarries are deep and cold so it can actually be some very challenging diving.

 

[tursiops]

As a new diver, or one working on skills, the scenery is not really very important. Getting wet and getting scuba experience is the point. Also, for most folks not living on the coast somewhere, quarries are logistically accessible and not expensive; you can do it on a weekend and not have to take any vacation days.

 

[TMHeimer]

So, I've been watching YouTube videos about diving in quarries, and I don't get it. A few of them have some fish, and some algal mats, but certainly not to the extent that I have seen in, say, Fishing With Luiza's snorkel trip in a river. Mostly, what I see is abandoned cars and other land-based junk, like visiting an underwater junkyard. If everything I can see in a quarry dive is something I can also see in a junkyard on land, why would I go to the trouble of diving there? What have I missed in these videos?

I hear ya. But like what others say, it may be the only option. I dive once every 2 weeks in winter (shore dives, MAYBE 15 feet) often with one foot viz. Keeps the wheels greased. Given other choices I would dump that idea for sure. I've also dived a couple of lakes and rivers just because I was there--no shells for my collection to speak of in fresh water. But what the heck.

 

[Addicted2H2O]

To add to what's already been said, it's all about local diving for those of us that are of some distance from good ocean diving. And quarries present their own challenges so it's almost a different style of diving. They do have their advantages, too, such as having to use a little less lead. Also, at least the ones I've been in have fairly limited visibility so this presents its own set of challenges, especially regarding underwater navigation. The one I most often frequent usually has no more than about 20 FT vis on the best day. I've been in it on days where it was only about 3 FT. So essentially this helps you further fine tune your navigation skills and makes you further appreciate the visibility you get during ocean dives. Now yes, they do tend to have things sunk so as to give us something to look at and explore. Those objects make for good training for wrecks, etc., too. Most often also have training platforms on which to train new OW students (at least the ones I've been to).

So while they're not exactly the most favorable diving you could imagine, quarries do have their merits and certainly shouldn't be overlooked if you want to get out and blow bubbles. They're excellent training grounds if you're looking to improve your skills and more often than not pretty convenient and easily accessible, not to mention more cost-effective if you're landlocked like some of us are.

 

[happy-diver]

the enlightenment of a diver

 

[tmassey]

For some of us, it's less about what we *see* and more about what we *do*. For me, the fun of SCUBA is the challenge of it. So any dive that presents a challenge is a good dive. Conversely, dives without challenge are less enjoyable. (I'm usually getting bored about 30 minutes into any reef dive unless the conditions are stunning.) The secret to making a quarry dive fun is to add a challenge to it, and that's where improving your skills comes in.

For me, the extreme example of this is ice diving. When it's November, and it's 20 degrees out and there's no ice, there's no way I'm going in the water, and certainly in those quarry conditions you described. But have the water freeze, and now make me have to cut a hole in the ice *before* I can even get in the water, and then I'm up for it. Because there is a challenge.

That and I like the reaction people give you when you tell them you went diving today, and they pause for a moment and say, "But isn't the lake frozen?" "Yes, yes it is..."

But then again, I'm not particularly normal...

 

[Addicted2H2O]

For some of us, it's less about what we *see* and more about what we *do*. For me, the fun of SCUBA is the challenge of it. So any dive that presents a challenge is a good dive. Conversely, dives without challenge are less enjoyable. (I'm usually getting bored about 30 minutes into any reef dive unless the conditions are stunning.) The secret to making a quarry dive fun is to add a challenge to it, and that's where improving your skills comes in.

For me, the extreme example of this is ice diving. When it's November, and it's 20 degrees out and there's no ice, there's no way I'm going in the water, and certainly in those quarry conditions you described. But have the water freeze, and now make me have to cut a hole in the ice *before* I can even get in the water, and then I'm up for it. Because there is a challenge.

That and I like the reaction people give you when you tell them you went diving today, and they pause for a moment and say, "But isn't the lake frozen?" "Yes, yes it is..."

But then again, I'm not particularly normal...

I got that same reaction when I told people here in DFW I was diving 50F poor vis lake water in the middle of January. "You're crazy!", "Nope, no thanks.", "Why would you do that?", etc. Simple answer....I love scuba. Plain and simple. I'd rather be blowing bubbles than sitting on my keester at home.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Local quarries can be in the 38-40 degree temp range at 125 feet. Same temps as the bottom of the Great Lakes without the boat ride needed. For training and skills development that mimic the more "scenic" environments where we also dive. Those have wrecks in remarkable states of preservation from the 1800's