Blue Springs Flood Photos and Story

[Diver Lori]

It seems that ecoli was very high in the not so past and they still catch high levels. Talk to anyone that has been around for a while and they will tell you about the out houses down by the water(we're not talking port a johns).

Yup, been diving there off and on since 1995. Under the previous owner and previous caretaker, I use to refer to the place as the "Festering He!! Hole" or FHH for short. Hobster can atest to that moniker for the quarry.

It was not unusual at all to see a stream of water from the latrines, straight to the quarry on the Central Beach. The latrines were set up high and against the hillside, in the general area the changing shed is now. I always assumed there was a natural spring from that hillside, but also thought of what wonderful organisms it picked up on it's journey past the latrines.

When the FHH was at its worst, the then caretaker would collect your entry fee and head to casinos to blow it all. He usually left you instructions on how to operate the compressor.....which was an AED waiting to happen. And when the swimmers came in around Noon, all bets were off.

Believe me people, it's been a lot worse out there than it has been in recent years.

 

[TheHobster]

ahhh, the good old days of swimmers and divers at BS - beer, young men trying to impress young women, and vice versa; bikinis on the docks, guys jumping off the cliffs while divers swam below; have to admit, I saw my first thong bikini at BS in 1991 during that time; quite nice I may add; turns out her dad was my dive buddy that day and HE worked with my father in law!! Open mouth insert foot.

Ray didn't care about the place. Just collected his money, all cash. TRIED to do that with the new owners and they caught him lying and he was gone in a flash. Sucks to be him. I think I heard he passed away a few years ago from cancer.

Rick, has been a mixed bag so far. Doubling the price was a shock and the email that went out justifying it has kept many of us from going; or at least going as often as we used to. Given my druthers, I will drive the extra 20 minutes to NSR, and get more amenities, lower viz but be appreciated; or drive an extra hour to France Prk, have better viz, more critters, more amenities and be appreciated.

Rick should take a Midwest Quarry tour some year and visit Haigh, Mermet, Gilboa dn NSR and see how people get treated at dive sites. Haigh and Mermet have EXCELLENT customer service; Mike at Gilboa is doing a better job at that and his docks are as good as it gets, although Haigh has covered docks. MIght be an eye opener for him

 

[TheHobster]

Got a response today from Blue Springs:

WE ARE PLANNING ON HAVING THE QUARRY OPEN FOR DIVING NEXT WEEK-END.(JUNE 27TH) WE STILL HAVE ABOUT TWO FOOT OF WATER OVER WHERE WE WANT TO BE BUT IT SHOULD BE OVER BY NEXT WEEK. WE ARE WORKING ON THE DOCKS RIGHT NOW. THE VISIBILITY IMPROVES EVERY DAY. SO HOPE TO SEE YOU THEN. AND YES, IT WAS A CATASTROPHY!!! LOOKIN GOOD NOW THO.

 

[crpntr133]

I loved David's (money taker) response when I complained about the price hike. It wasn't what was printed in the email. He told me that you can't go anyplace for $10 so they figured they would raise their prices. Of course he was rather surprised when I told him that you can get into any park for less than that for a car load. Personally I think they raised prices because they could.
I'm pretty sure that he has paid for it this year if not last. I was there a few weeks back and at 9 there was NOBODY there diving. Three others rolled in for a class. When my DB and I left at around 3:30 the same three were there but nobody else. This was on a Saturday. Never seen this before in my 4 years of diving at BS. It is truly a shame.

I wouldn't mind diving Hidden Paradise if the dock was in better shape for exiting.


Anybody heard more about them allowing swimmers this year? David was implying last year that this is the reason that they built the showers. I had also heard several mention it here.

 

[streyflip23]

wow, i was kinda hopin to go there somewhat soon too... thats terrible

 

[erparamedic]

Got a response today from Blue Springs:

WE ARE PLANNING ON HAVING THE QUARRY OPEN FOR DIVING NEXT WEEK-END.(JUNE 27TH) WE STILL HAVE ABOUT TWO FOOT OF WATER OVER WHERE WE WANT TO BE BUT IT SHOULD BE OVER BY NEXT WEEK. WE ARE WORKING ON THE DOCKS RIGHT NOW. THE VISIBILITY IMPROVES EVERY DAY. SO HOPE TO SEE YOU THEN. AND YES, IT WAS A CATASTROPHY!!! LOOKIN GOOD NOW THO.

Good news. I'm curious to see what it looks like when it's reopened.

 

[diveski01]

I loved David's (money taker) response when I complained about the price hike. It wasn't what was printed in the email. He told me that you can't go anyplace for $10 so they figured they would raise their prices.

Phillips Quarry is only $7, but no amenities beyond porta potties in summer months AFAIK. There is a heated shack during winter, but no potties in winter.

Diving quarries take a LOT of work by both the owners and the area dive shops. Many of the docks at Gilboa are built by dive shops. Mike is constantly updating and improving the facilities above, near, and below the water. Haigh and Natural Springs apparently have constant maintenance as well.

More volunteer work would be done at Blue Springs if the owner had a better relationship with dive shops and frequent divers. I mentioned an annual pass to Rick when he raised the rates but he wasn't interested in retaining his loyal customer base. It's a bummer all around. My weekend diving had already come to a screeching halt due to the rates. Maybe this summer we'll investigate other places within driving distance since we'd also have >$30/day kennel fees to go somewhere overnight or for the weekend.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

More volunteer work would be done at Blue Springs if the owner had a better relationship with dive shops and frequent divers. I mentioned an annual pass to Rick when he raised the rates but he wasn't interested in retaining his loyal customer base. It's a bummer all around. My weekend diving had already come to a screeching halt due to the rates. Maybe this summer we'll investigate other places within driving distance since we'd also have >$30/day kennel fees to go somewhere overnight or for the weekend.

I hear ya. This is the same sentiment many of the instructors I know have. He really burned alot of bridges. It wasn't just that he raised rates, it was the justification he game via a mass email which pretty much accused the instructors that regularly used his quarry of being thieves. Not a good way to build a loyal base of customers willing to help you out.

 

[crpntr133]

There are very few quarries that charge more than $10. Those that do, you get what you pay for... IE showers and real toilets.
The main reason that I have dove BS this year is because of the price of gas. It use to be that I could drive to FRP..aka Joe's, in KY for about the same total money. It was another hours drive for me but I didn't care.

 

[wb416]

It will be interesting to see if the quarry truly recovers after a river flooding. I know that viz wasn't stellar before, but the introduction of river water may keep viz poor for a while to come. I know that Mike at Gilboa figured he'd be out of business if the river got into his quarry. That's why he fought so hard. Even so, I know that Mike was trying to get a hold of BS to see if there was anything he could do to help.

I was really hoping to get to BS a couple of times this year. Hopefully Joe's is a good option... only been there once early last year.