Stein
Guest
I have been tossing over the idea of creating a little mini-reef. This has probably been done by a bunch of divers already, but I didn't see a post.
I first got the idea when helping my bro-in-law rip out an old sidewalk in his back yard and we were trying to figure out the best way to get rid of them.........but the concrete blocks were rather large and I didn't want to add my boat to the reef in the process.
I then tried to get him to donate an old VW Squareback, but no luck.
I had this old car once, an 87 Sable that I drove until the wheels fell off. I was considering donating it to a dive park, but was unable to locate a suitable location. My next thought was to find a beach that I could get the car to, drain all of the fluids, batteries etc, put on my scuba gear, tie a heavy, verrrry long rope to the bumper and the other end to my boat, climb into the car, push the car down the hill towards the water, gun the boat............
Fortunately, I relized I had probably been drinking too much when the plan was drafted. My buddies were all for it as long as they weren't involved. Looking back, this is about the worst idea I have ever had.
Back to the mini-reef. This is probably in violation of some law, somewhere, but if I choose the site correctly, it is deep enough and out of the way from boats, and do it in a manner that is pleasant to the eye, I figure why not? No, I won't dump batteries, engines with oil or anything that will harm the environment, or a bunch of old junk, quite the contrary, I want to enhance it and provide a location for some creatures to call home.
After all, a good portion of the dives in the NW are artifical to begin with.
I want to create some sort of octopus/wolf eel dens, a spot for rockfish, and something for anenome to grab hold of. The spot I am thinking of is a featureless sand bottom, like most of the NW.
The location will probably be in on the Olympic Peninsula, and I thought of a great plan.
If you have a "donation" to make to the reef, let me know. If it is good enough (yes, this is a high-class reef, more about this below), either I will give you the gps coordinates and you can add it, or if the item is on the peninsula near say Port Angeles or Sequim, I will pick it up and add it to the reef myself.
I would rather have interesting, unique, or cool things to look at rather than the usual tires/concrete chunks/toilet/washing machine reef. Smaller items are better since I don't have a barge and prefer not to die in the process.
The reef will be a short boat ride from a good launch. It will be in a very protected area in about 40-60 feet of water, and away from most boat traffic, fisherman, etc.
This is probably opening a can of worms, but what good ideas are out there for cool things for my mini-reef?
Likewise, if you think this is a terrible idea, justify your position. I am a diver and don't want to create an underwater scrapyard, just a cool little spot for fish to hang out and some people to dive. I think it would be interesting and informative to watch the development of the reef and record how long it took for certain life to find it or grow on it.
I first got the idea when helping my bro-in-law rip out an old sidewalk in his back yard and we were trying to figure out the best way to get rid of them.........but the concrete blocks were rather large and I didn't want to add my boat to the reef in the process.
I then tried to get him to donate an old VW Squareback, but no luck.
I had this old car once, an 87 Sable that I drove until the wheels fell off. I was considering donating it to a dive park, but was unable to locate a suitable location. My next thought was to find a beach that I could get the car to, drain all of the fluids, batteries etc, put on my scuba gear, tie a heavy, verrrry long rope to the bumper and the other end to my boat, climb into the car, push the car down the hill towards the water, gun the boat............
Fortunately, I relized I had probably been drinking too much when the plan was drafted. My buddies were all for it as long as they weren't involved. Looking back, this is about the worst idea I have ever had.
Back to the mini-reef. This is probably in violation of some law, somewhere, but if I choose the site correctly, it is deep enough and out of the way from boats, and do it in a manner that is pleasant to the eye, I figure why not? No, I won't dump batteries, engines with oil or anything that will harm the environment, or a bunch of old junk, quite the contrary, I want to enhance it and provide a location for some creatures to call home.
After all, a good portion of the dives in the NW are artifical to begin with.
I want to create some sort of octopus/wolf eel dens, a spot for rockfish, and something for anenome to grab hold of. The spot I am thinking of is a featureless sand bottom, like most of the NW.
The location will probably be in on the Olympic Peninsula, and I thought of a great plan.
If you have a "donation" to make to the reef, let me know. If it is good enough (yes, this is a high-class reef, more about this below), either I will give you the gps coordinates and you can add it, or if the item is on the peninsula near say Port Angeles or Sequim, I will pick it up and add it to the reef myself.
I would rather have interesting, unique, or cool things to look at rather than the usual tires/concrete chunks/toilet/washing machine reef. Smaller items are better since I don't have a barge and prefer not to die in the process.
The reef will be a short boat ride from a good launch. It will be in a very protected area in about 40-60 feet of water, and away from most boat traffic, fisherman, etc.
This is probably opening a can of worms, but what good ideas are out there for cool things for my mini-reef?
Likewise, if you think this is a terrible idea, justify your position. I am a diver and don't want to create an underwater scrapyard, just a cool little spot for fish to hang out and some people to dive. I think it would be interesting and informative to watch the development of the reef and record how long it took for certain life to find it or grow on it.
