Two lake huron dives for inspiration!!!! And maybe a wreck diving book? Or great beginner scuba book?

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

@HamTrainChickenLaser,

I just read through this thread. Let me add this: I learned to dive in MO freshwater lakes in the late 1980's. We wore a 0.25" FJ and jacket, and bibbed hood, booties, and gloves or mitts--because it didn't take much depth at all before we were diving below the second thermocline. When I first moved to Ann Arbor MI in the early 1990's, I would drive down to Gilboa and White Star and dive wearing the same exposure wear that I wore in MO. These were relatively short-duration, recreational dives to shallow-moderate depths. No problem whatsoever.

Of course, I was used to diving in all the bulk that's required to dive colder water.

You won't know until you dive in colder water, that you actually like it. The shallow side of Gilboa is probably still a great place to sample this type of diving. My advice: Don't buy any gear for this type of diving until you've tried this type of diving.

rx7diver

P.S. Only when I began training to dive deeper, longer exposures did I purchase a (custom) drysuit. (A wetsuit loses more and more of its ability to insulate as you dive deeper.)

Roger that! I have already bought an exposure suit though- but it was an amazing price and only had two dives on it. I couldn't help myself!!!!! Gotcha on deeper dives with a wetsuit. I think that is mostly a function of the pressure at depth squeezing the little air spaces, correct? I mean a 7mm wetsuit will not be 7mm thick at 100', so it won't be as warm.

OK I will calm down with the cold water gear for now. BUT- RK3 fins are fine in the tropics as well, true? I've heard they are popular down there at any rate.

I am in Ann Arbor often for work and it's a great town!!!!

 

[rx7diver]

... Gotcha on deeper dives with a wetsuit. I think that is mostly a function of the pressure at depth squeezing the little air spaces, correct? I mean a 7mm wetsuit will not be 7mm thick at 100', so it won't be as warm. ...

Yes, the air bubbles in the neoprene shrink down under pressure. (It is these air bubbles that provide the insulation.) I also wonder whether a normal wetsuit fits a bit looser, too, under pressure, which might mean a greater exchange of water in and out of the suit. (Semi-dry wetsuits have neck and wrist seals that help control this water exchange.)

When I lived in AA MI, my then-GF traveled up from MO to join me (in 1993) for my first dive trip to Isle Royale MI in northwest Lake Superior. We were doing recreational dives to 130-140 ffw (so, relatively short BT's). I dove my (new) drysuit, and she dove her MO FJ wetsuit. Wearing wool liners beneath her wetsuit, booties, and three-finger mitts (and with chemical hand warmers inside her mitts), she was comfortable enough for the initial dives, but remained too chilled to join the rest of us (all drysuit divers) for the repetitive dives.

Cold is cold! And the bulk of cold water gear is real!

rx7diver

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

Yes, the air bubbles in the neoprene shrink down under pressure. (It is these air bubbles that provide the insulation.) I also wonder whether a normal wetsuit fits a bit looser, too, under pressure, which might mean a greater exchange of water in and out of the suit. (Semi-dry wetsuits have neck and wrist seals that help control this water exchange.)

When I lived in AA MI, my then-GF traveled up from MO to join me (in 1993) for my first dive trip to Isle Royale MI in northwest Lake Superior. We were doing recreational dives to 130-140 ffw (so, relatively short BT's). I dove my (new) drysuit, and she dove her MO FJ wetsuit. Wearing wool liners beneath her wetsuit, booties, and three-finger mitts (and with chemical hand warmers inside her mitts), she was comfortable enough for the initial dives, but remained too chilled to join the rest of us (all drysuit divers) for the repetitive dives.

Cold is cold! And the bulk of cold water gear is real!

rx7diver

That is good to know!!! Lake Superior is very cold I've heard.

 

[rx7diver]

That is good to know!!! Lake Superior is very cold I've heard.

Yes, cold from surface to depth. Especially northwest Lake Superior. But diving Lake Superior is absolutely worth it. My fav was Whitefish Point (southeast Lake Superior), not only for its proximity to AA (compared to Grand Portage MN where we would catch the dive boat to dive Isle Royale), but especially for its more accessible, wooden shipwrecks. But this is decompression diving, to depths deeper than 140 ffw. (Decompression diving, best done dry, IMHO).

There is (or used to be) good recreational diving in the Mackinac Straits near the Bridge. (Cold water that can be dove wet reasonably comfortably.)

rx7diver

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

Yes, cold from surface to depth. Especially northwest Lake Superior. But diving Lake Superior is absolutely worth it. My fav was Whitefish Point (southeast Lake Superior), not only for its proximity to AA (compared to Grand Portage MN where we would catch the dive boat to dive Isle Royale), but especially for its more accessible, wooden shipwrecks. But this is decompression diving, to depths deeper than 140 ffw. (Decompression diving, best done dry, IMHO).

There is (or used to be) good recreational diving in the Mackinac Straits near the Bridge. (Cold water that can be dove wet reasonably comfortably.)

rx7diver

This all sounds amazing!!