Possum Kingdom Diving?

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jalistair

Contributor
Messages
202
Reaction score
2
Location
Copperas Cove, TX
# of dives
50 - 99
Does anyone dive at Possum Kingdom? I understand their used to be a dive shop there, is it still open? Do you have to use a boat for diving or are there shore dive locations as well? Is this a quality dive location? (visibility)

Thanks for the help!
 
Last I heard the dive shop was closed and you have to dive off a boat now.
 
In order of questions asked":
Yes.
Nope. It closed.
For all practical purposes, yes, we always dive from a boat.
Vis varies. Not only does it vary by season and conditon (rainfall, etc...), it varies by location A LOT. Generally, the closer to the dam the better the vis (but stay out of the border markers...they get cranky about that). It also varies by depth. I've gone through 20 feet of six-foot murk only to have it open up to more than 60 feet of vis...no kidding, from the ceiling of cloudiness, we could see the bottom at 75 feet in the beams of our lights...helped us find the stuck anchor we were looking for.
 
It used to smell of rotten eggs....maybe still does----methane gas being released from the lakes bottom.
 
I have a buddy on divebuddy.com that is from Stephenville. He dives Possum Kingdom. He said the same thing. That the dive shop is closed and gone. There is no lake access there anymore. I am sure that you can access the lake from the state park if you don't have a boat but that limits where you dive since is is a huge lake. The state park web site says there is boat rental available too, if you are interested. The fire a couple of years ago burned alot of stuff up that way. I am planning on trying it out with him this summer. Will post more then.
 
I drove all the way from Lawton one time because I read so many great things about Possum Kingdom diving. What a waste of gas!
Lake Lawtonka is much clearer and nicer to dive, IMO. However, unless something's changed, you have to go all the way to Duncan to fill tanks.
 
Where did you dive, Tracy? Was that when "Scuba Point" (the dive shop and lake access) was open? If so, that's not particularly the best place to dive Lake PK. There are a number of coves and walls nearer the dam that offer much better visibility. Of course, those are only accessible by boat. A lot of folks make the mistake of listening to 'old stories' concerning the best places to dive. For example, people just can't resist diving inside Hell's Gate. That's a mistake, since that particular cove is where the mouths of at least two creeks dump into the lake, therefore it's very silty and murky most of the time. However, on the OUTSIDE of the Hell's Gate wall, the shore slopes steeply down for about 90 feet, and at about 60-70 feet you'll encounter the "ghost forest" of trees that were covered up when the valley was flooded to make the lake. It's usually pretty good vis, and it's even a bit eerie down there, but it's striking and pretty cool.
There are other places of interest, but they usually aren't the ones that get mentioned by the "old school" divers.
 
I live pretty close to PK, but never dove it. If anyone's going out to one of the better spots that Guba mentioned I'd be interested...
 
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