Autumn is here

[Storker]

Finally got in the water today, it's been a month since last time. Air temp was 10C (50F), surface temp 11C (52F), bottom temp 12C (54F). First time since summer I've seen a reverse thermocline. The other day my car's hood was frozen over when I got out of the front door in the morning - and the windshield would also have been frozen over, if not for Defa :cool2:

Yup, autumn is here. Looking forward to the cold water viz again. And I love my dry suit

 

[Zog]

I've never experienced a reverse thermocline. Is that common where you dive?

 

[Storker]

Yes, that's standard during fall, winter and early spring. In the summer, the surface is warmest. During the cold season, it's cooler on the surface than deeper down, and it's not uncommon to have a marked thermocline between the cold surface water and the not-quite-as-cold deeper water.

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[tamas970]

I live a little more to the south, but expect the same from our lakes. The surface is sometimes frozen while beneath one could find +6-8C. Some people dive semidry whole year around.

 

[DaleC]

I have noticed the lake vis changing too. In the summer it was bad on top, better below. Now it's good on top, bad below. I believe the alga blooms are dying off and settling slowly out of suspension. Today I was in a lake where the vis line was a perfect 42ft all along the contour. drop below and you're in the fog.

 

[TMHeimer]

---------- Post added September 29th, 2013 at 11:01 PM ----------

Storker, Our bottom temp. is still mid 50's and air 60-70 F or more. Aug.-Oct is the best time for diving wet here. The ocean takes so long to warm up (still usually 40s in early June), but equally long to cool off. Different climates--probably due to the Labrador Current here and the Gulf Stream/North Atlantic Drift in Norway. We winter on the Gulf of Mexico, which features the Loop Current, an offshoot of the Gulf Stream. I see you're from Trondheim. Have you been through Hell lately? When I went through there in '84 it was thunder and lightning--just in that area.

 

[Storker]

The ocean takes so long to warm up (still usually 40s in early June), but equally long to cool off. Different climates--probably due to the Labrador Current here and the Gulf Stream/North Atlantic Drift in Norway.

I'm with you there, the big ocean currents have a lot of influence on the climate.

Have you been through Hell lately?

Every time I'm catching a flight

When I went through there in '84 it was thunder and lightning--just in that area.

The normal weather in Hell is pretty much the same as in Trondheim: Predominantly cool and wet. It's no wonder that the Norse version of Hell, Hel, was imagined as a cold and wet place, not a hot place. I guess the Vikings couldn't imagine that a hot place as Hellish

And for the benefit of those not "getting" the joke here:
Hell, Norway - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hell Station
Town Consumer Reviews | Don’t get a speeding ticket on the Highway to Hell | Epinions.com

There was an initiative some time ago, to rename the freeway between Trondheim and Stjørdal "Highway to Hell". And the airport from "Trondheim Airport Værnes" to "Hell International" (yes, there are a couple of international fligths from the airport every day). The authorities didn't think it was a particularly good idea...

 

[Tigerman]

Might be fall, and we might have the frost coming during the nights (btw, did you know things like cars can get frosty even if its not freezing? has to do with heat dissipation), but theres still some nice days to be had

 

[Storker]

Nice...

 

[Storker]

Another one today. Best viz I've ever had in the Trondheim fjord, easily some 20m (60-70 feet). It was great to roll on my back at 18msw, look up and actually see the waves on the surface. I was lying there for so long that my buddy actually felt the need to to check on me there, lying face up just looking up and not moving a limb. Wild, and it's sooo nice when the water cools down and the phytoplankton start dying off. That kind of viz is what makes me prefer the coast over the fjord whenever I have the opportunity. Temp was 11C air, 11C surface, 11C bottom. That's 52F for you metrically challenged 'murricans. Cool. In more than one meaning.

On the downside, I probably won't reach the big five-oh in my logbook this year; I've still got half a dozen dives to go and I've got another hobby that takes up most of my autumn free time. I hafta remind myself that diving ain't a competitive sport. Next year, though...