Ainesworth, Nebraska

[Green_Manelishi]

My father is planning to relocate to Ainesworth. At least that's what I think he called the town. He says it's about a 5 hour ride from Omaha in north/central Nebraska.

Anyway, assuming I heard him correctly, if I visit him are there any decent dive sites within a reasonable drive from that location?

 

[StSomewhere]

No. Not within a reasonable drive. There are some dive-able lakes in South Dakota. PM DA Aquamaster, or maybe Wkndbum who goes spearfishing up there sometimes.

BTW, its spelled Ainsworth. Not a lot there besides some farming and ranching.

 

[Green_Manelishi]

BTW, its spelled Ainsworth. Not a lot there besides some farming and ranching.

and that's why he wants to relocate to that location.

Thanks for the information.

 

[Wkndbum]

My father is planning to relocate to Ainesworth. At least that's what I think he called the town. He says it's about a 5 hour ride from Omaha in north/central Nebraska.

Anyway, assuming I heard him correctly, if I visit him are there any decent dive sites within a reasonable drive from that location?

Ainsworth is about 4 1/2 hr drive from Omaha. Best diving from there would probably be Francis Case Reservor (2 hrs) or Oahe Reservor (3 1/2 Hr?)

I have seen decent vis on Merritt Reservor (1 hr) but it"s usually short lived.

Terry

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Ainsworth is about 260 miles and 5 hours from Pactola Lake in the Black Hills of SD which offers some very good fresh water diving with viz consistently in the 20-30 ft range. It offers 150 ft of max water depth and the main body of the lake is 110-130 ft deep, conseuqently it stays pretty cold year round (it was ice free but 34 degrees today). Water levels are currently down 27 ft after 6 years of drought so some of the deeper dive sites are getting relatively shallow.

The Angastora Reservoir in Hot Spings is about the same distance. It offers the opportunity to spear walleye, but the visibility generally sucks. Water levels are also very low.

Lake Oahe near Pierre SD is about 180 miles and 3.5 hours from Ainsworth. Oahe has some great walleye Spearfishing and visibility can be superb (30 ft) or horrible (5 ft) and can go from great to horrible in about 15 minutes when the wind picks up. Water levels are at near record lows however. This makes the visibility worse than usual as the waves are washing much more silt that normal. Once (if) the levels come up again, visibility should be superb since all the silt on the shorelines will have washed away to depths of 40-50 feet deep in many places. You can also drift dive in the tailrace below the Oahe Dam and that is always fun.

Ainsworth is about 120 miles and 2.0 hours from Pickstown which is along the Missouri and also offers reasonably good diving. You could go a couple hours farther east and dive Lake Okaboji in Iowa as well.

Lake McConaughy in Nebraska is a couple hours south West of Ainsworth and it also offers Walleye spearfishing opportunities.

So there is not much in Ainsworth, but a few hours in any direction will get you somewhere with diveable water.

 

[Green_Manelishi]

Ainsworth is about 260 miles and 5 hours from Pactola Lake in the Black Hills of SD which offers some very good fresh water diving with viz consistently in the 20-30 ft range. It offers 150 ft of max water depth and the main body of the lake is 110-130 ft deep, conseuqently it stays pretty cold year round (it was ice free but 34 degrees today). Water levels are currently down 27 ft after 6 years of drought so some of the deeper dive sites are getting relatively shallow.

The Angastora Reservoir in Hot Spings is about the same distance. It offers the opportunity to spear walleye, but the visibility generally sucks. Water levels are also very low.

Lake Oahe near Pierre SD is about 180 miles and 3.5 hours from Ainsworth. Oahe has some great walleye Spearfishing and visibility can be superb (30 ft) or horrible (5 ft) and can go from great to horrible in about 15 minutes when the wind picks up. Water levels are at near record lows however. This makes the visibility worse than usual as the waves are washing much more silt that normal. Once (if) the levels come up again, visibility should be superb since all the silt on the shorelines will have washed away to depths of 40-50 feet deep in many places. You can also drift dive in the tailrace below the Oahe Dam and that is always fun.

Ainsworth is about 120 miles and 2.0 hours from Pickstown which is along the Missouri and also offers reasonably good diving. You could go a couple hours farther east and dive Lake Okaboji in Iowa as well.

Lake McConaughy in Nebraska is a couple hours south West of Ainsworth and it also offers Walleye spearfishing opportunities.

So there is not much in Ainsworth, but a few hours in any direction will get you somewhere with diveable water.

Hmmm.

So whatever time I "lose" driving might be saved because I don't have to rinse gear

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Well...since the airline connections absolutely suck, salt water diving will require a long drive to Omaha or Denver for the priviledge of paying astronomically high airfares to get anywhere worth going.

Not having to rinse the salt off your gear after diving the local lakes is a small consolation. A very small one, as it turns out, as you still have to rinse the silt and mud off your stuff.

 

[HammerNoMore]

Not having to rinse the salt off your gear after diving the local lakes is a small consolation. A very small one, as it turns out, as you still have to rinse the silt and mud off your stuff.

Not if you stay off the bottom. Just ribbing you DA. Seriously though, silt and mud simply require a rinse where as with salt a good soaking is in order.

James