This adventure didn’t happen at Lock 23. It was at Ivy Lea Campground where divers regularly take in the underwater scenery on the northern shore drift. The adventure wasn’t about the dive itself; it was about getting into the water at the start. Picture the general scene: The shoreline is rocky with plenty of boulders. …
Author: SJSchnurr
Replacing a Weight Pouch Underwater
A Scuba Palace Discussion A few weeks ago I posted about the difficulties associated with removing and replacing a weight-integrated BCD underwater. I’ve wanted to follow up with a note about replacing the weight pouches themselves. Online “lost and found” posts are relatively frequent – where divers have tried to track down the owner of …
We Need Rain
A LOT of rain. At this point, it's the only thing that'll raise the water. It can't be just local rainfall; it must include the whole of the Seaway system. I guess we wait. Larry and I toured the Saunders Dam Visitor Centre in Cornwall yesterday, a fascinating display of the construction of the dam …
Diver Missing (but Found) on the Tin Plate Drift
The view here is calm but it wasn't so on Wednesday evening. As we milled about after our dives, our last group was in the water and expected to exit right about here. However, some of its members surfaced early, calling to us from upstream for assistance with a missing diver. In the end, everyone …
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2022 August 17: Such Low Water!! Such poor viz!
We've had great conditions and become a bit spoiled at Lock 23 all summer so were dumbfounded to find the water level as low as it was last night. Computers resting right on the road hovered at a reading just below 9 feet! I'd never even noticed - busy in the yard and then chatting …
Continue reading 2022 August 17: Such Low Water!! Such poor viz!
North and East Aren’t Quite What We Thought
Throughout this site, I've always said that Canada is north and the river flows east. I've also said that even as we use our compass to head north, the current carries us downstream as we swim, which means that we don't arrive at the same point in the river that we started from. Of late, …
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Removing an Integrated-Weight BCD Underwater
Removing is the easy part... we have to get it back on afterwards.... A Scuba Palace Discussion We had a discussion around the BBQ recently about the problems associated with fully or partially removing an integrated-weight BCD underwater - the type of BCD most commonly used by divers today. In the "old" days, not so …
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No Current at Lock 23 – Haha
For the past two weeks (at least on Wednesday nights!), there has been no appreciable current through the locks... or at least to our way of thinking! A slow approach, a slow drift through, an easy climb over the walls, a casual seat on the top! What gives!...? This is always the question. Remember: (1) …
2022 July 17: Lock 23 Site Update
Wow. Mid-July already and it's my first post! Time to catch up and move forward. Although we've been in the water regularly since mid-June, I can now safely say that everyone is wearing wetsuits (generally 7 mm) without hoods or heavy gloves. Water temp is regularly 21C/70F and warming up more in the summer heat. …
A Bare-Bones Guide to the Exit
I get lots of questions on the details of the exit plan, from the time that you arrive at the third crib at the end of the Hydroelectric Plant route (or you make your way to that spot from any of the other routes). Most times, divers have a general knowledge of the territory but …
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