Weather and water temps have been pretty much the norm for the middle of October: sunny, cool days punctuated by regular rain and thunderstorms and the river dipping below 15C/60F. The main event of this Thanksgiving weekend has been the International River Board's raising of the water level in Lake St. Lawrence (the area between …
Author: SJSchnurr
Slammed in the HE Plant Back-Eddy
A few days ago I dove the Hydroelectric Plant route with my wonderful dive buddy, Lise. She and I explore the river often, and she has accompanied me many times at Lock 23. She's the perfect dive buddy: she stays close, she enjoys every aspect of the dive, and she's quite content to go wherever …
HE Plant: Through the Sluice Gates and Headpond to the Plant Turbine Area
I've detailed the depth at which to drift to reach the sluice gates on this page, and what the river bottom looks like on that drift on this page. Your first landmark will be the stepped end of the headpond's north wall, seen only if you're drifting "shallow", anywhere from 12 to 18 feet (if …
Continue reading HE Plant: Through the Sluice Gates and Headpond to the Plant Turbine Area
HE Plant: Overview
from stlawrencepiks.com The Morrisburg Hydroelectric Plant was built in 1901. I don't know about anyone else, but I always assumed that it was built around the time of the Rapide Plat Lock right next door. But I was 45 years wrong. If you look at the overhead photo below, you can see how both sides …
Lock Conditions 12 Aug 2020
I dove the lock last evening... I have been working at updating information on the HydroElectric Plant and wanted to do a quick check of current conditions. It was my first dive of the season - with all the changes in my pandemic existence this summer - and I noted several changes. The first was …
Website Updates are Moving Along
I've been working at updating the site as you know. I have now added a lot more information and a number of short videos to my pages on (1) entry details, (2) drifting to the locks while aiming for certain arrival spots and watching for clues along the river bottom to help you get there, …
Lock 23 Diving is Running Smoothly
Diving at Lock 23 is working well with beautiful weather, good dive conditions, and ample parking for those divers who are comfortable outfitting themselves without assistance and can cruise the locks with the knowledge that they can get home safely if separated from their buddy or group. Within these parameters, the system runs smoothly. There …
Morrisburg Beach Closed on Weekends
South Dundas has opted to close its beaches at Morrisburg and Iroquois on weekends, effective immediately until further notice. This obviously impacts divers on Lock 23 since the beach is the exit point for the dive. Until I can get out tomorrow and survey things, I do not know exactly how divers might yet work …
Lock 23 Conditions: 25 June 2020
Apart from the strong winds yesterday that messed up visibility for a while, Lock 23 conditions are good. Water temperature is 18C/65F, a great starting point for wet-suiters. Current is fairly normal in all areas. The washrooms at the public beach are currently closed for maintenance. The washrooms at the public boat dock are open …
I’m Updating the Site
It's time. To update. To improve. To ensure that all information here is accurate and useful for the current season. I'll add or subtract written details, change images, and add videos to improve the posts. I'll also likely get rid of a few old ones. Learning how to include videos means I have to organize …
