Bottle hunting

[TimK]

Does anyone specifically go out bottle/clay pipe hunting in the rivers and bays/harbors around here or are the bottles that are found mostly by accident by being in the right place at the right time? I've done 3 dives in the Piscataqua and found 4 bottles worth keeping that date early 1930's -1940's. I found a plate that dates to 1885 and a broken bottle that could date back to the mid 1700's. I love looking for old junk but am having a hard time finding someone to dive with regularly who would enjoy this activity (no offense reefseal but you'll be off doing tech dives now with your trimix cert. )

Anybody out there need a junk diving buddy? Can travel NE with advance notice for scheduling purposes.

 

[ScubaSarus]

I love to junk dive. Not to many people like fresh water exploring in CT. I definitley want to explore the southern end of the CT river.

 

[MSilvia]

Check out the Sarah Long bridge in Portsmouth, NH... it's the one to the left as you drive into Maine on I-95. I understand it used to be a common place for railroad trains to discard garbage, but whatever the reason there are more antique bottles, plates, and bits of antique debris than you could haul out in 100 dives. It's like an underwater flea market over there.

 

[dbg40]

I gotta get up there for a junk dive one of these days. Better go before Chris gets there though, the guy is a friggin junk MAGNET! He just swims along, and stuff jumps into his hands!

 

[One fin]

Does anyone specifically go out bottle/clay pipe hunting in the rivers and bays/harbors around here or are the bottles that are found mostly by accident by being in the right place at the right time? I've done 3 dives in the Piscataqua and found 4 bottles worth keeping that date early 1930's -1940's. I found a plate that dates to 1885 and a broken bottle that could date back to the mid 1700's. I love looking for old junk but am having a hard time finding someone to dive with regularly who would enjoy this activity (no offense reefseal but you'll be off doing tech dives now with your trimix cert. )

Anybody out there need a junk diving buddy? Can travel NE with advance notice for scheduling purposes.

I have a trimix cert and still love looking for bottles.

 

[ScubaSarus]

"I gotta get up there for a junk dive one of these days. Better go before Chris gets there though, the guy is a friggin junk MAGNET! He just swims along, and stuff jumps into his hands!"

Just a bit of luck Dave; but the site in NH sounds like good idea. I may rent a U-haul for the trip.

 

[MSilvia]

Just a bit of luck Dave; but the site in NH sounds like good idea. I may rent a U-haul for the trip.

Make sure you dive the site at slack tide... the current rips there at times. Also, bring a lift bag to help you carry the full catch bag full of junk you're probably going to find. The inland side of the bridge on the Maine shore has a decent entry beach, but there is boat traffic, so make sure you have a flag, try to keep the flag out of the middle of the channel (to avoid scoldings by the harbor patrol), and don't surface in the middle if you can help it.

 

[dbg40]

"I gotta get up there for a junk dive one of these days. Better go before Chris gets there though, the guy is a friggin junk MAGNET! He just swims along, and stuff jumps into his hands!"

Just a bit of luck Dave; but the site in NH sounds like good idea. I may rent a U-haul for the trip.

Ahhhhh,, you dirty dog, it took 200 years to throw all those goodies in the river, and you'll find all the goood bling in 2 dives! How'd you make out on the diamond ring? You sell it? ....Or lookin for a girl to give it too!

 

[Green_Manelishi]

Check out the Sarah Long bridge in Portsmouth, NH... it's the one to the left as you drive into Maine on I-95. I understand it used to be a common place for railroad trains to discard garbage, but whatever the reason there are more antique bottles, plates, and bits of antique debris than you could haul out in 100 dives. It's like an underwater flea market over there.

If you are driving into Maine on I95, the SL bridge is on your right.

I highly suggest the OP try to schedule his first dive with someone very familiar with that river. As you point out in a subsequent post, the current rips and you do not want to surface in the middle of that river.

The OP might also try diving at Prescott Park. I know of several very valuable finds in that area.

P.S. With the exception of the current, I am not "very" familiar with the river. My diving in it is now limited to recovering lobster traps. For anything else I go along with someone who knows the site(s).

 

[TimK]

Thanks for the suggestions. I normally dive the river with reefseal but he has been off doing the deco/trimix cert thing so looking for someone else to dive not only the Piscataqua, but other promising sites in NE. I am also familier with the currents and the need to dive at slack tide in the river or have a boat to chase you down (done a couple of charter scallop dives in there too) where the current pushed us around a bit. Just wanted to know if anyone else was interested in doing some junk dives anywhere in the area.