Have you ever dived (dove, diven...?) Lake Tahoe?

[Guba]

I just got back from a (too short) trip to Lake Tahoe South. It was my first trip there (for a wedding) and was amazed by the clarity. Okay, so I know that has to be one cold lake, but boaters often comment on being able to see the bottom in 75-100 feet of water. My question is...has anyone dived Lake Tahoe, and if so, how was it?

 

[Jorbar1551]

Never dove their myself, but i've heard many people say that the vis is breathtaking. there isnt much else...a few large boulders and crawdads, but that is about it. unless you go super deep, then you wont find any large schools of fish.

It does get cold, but you dont always need a drysuit. my dive shop did an altitude and a drysuit class on the same two dives. i went diving in monterey when it was snowing (at sea level), and two crazy *** divers said they dove tahoe the week earlier with 2 feet of snow at the beach, and in a wetsuit.

 

[kc00per]

We dove there this past July. Vis was good but not all that great. Probably 30-40' at most. Surface temp was 72 and when we hit the first thermocline at 60' it dropped to 50. We were at Rubicon wall and had fun chasin the Crawdads, other than that the only fish we saw were the schools of fingerlings. The highlight of the trip was swimming out over the wall and looking into the depth of what we knew was around 800' straight down, even though we couldn't see that far.

 

[uspap]

We dove Tahoe with 3.2 mil suits. We got to around 80 ft. It wasn't that bad. Viz was awesome. The one area we went to was stateline wall. It was pretty cool. A lot of boulders to see. We saw more Corona bottles than fish down there. We were in Tahoe for a week of boating and so we brought our gear with us. I don't know if I would plan a special dive trip to tahoe. I plan on diving there again next time I find myself up there.

 

[The Natural]

Actually there are a few good wrecks to see in Lake Tahoe. I've never dove it but only been there to ski. I believe it was Advanced Diver Mag that had an article on them.

 

[Ann Marie]

I dove there with some friends last year. The lake water was warmer than the ocean water when we were there. Viz was great for us. We took an altitude dive class with Sierra Divers (they have a website with info about classes and info about dive sites) and dove on the Nevada side. The next day we dove Rubicon Wall. If you get a chance, do it. If you don't take the altitude class, make sure you know all the differences in diving at altitude (and driving to altitude) before you 'just hit the water'. The class wasn't expensive, they supplied the cylinders and it was fun! Besides on the Nevada side you need to have a dive flag. The instructor had and carried the flag for us.

 

[Jon C]

I read an article some time back in (the now defunct) Immerse magazine about a group of tech divers that dove on the SS Tahoe that was intentionally sunk in the lake. I believe it is in 400 feet of water and (while I don't recall the specifics) they were on the wreck for about 7 minutes and spent 4+ hours on deco stops...hardly seems worth it to me.

Is Tahoe the lake with the B-29 that belly landed many years ago and is fairly intact? I think that one is VERY deep also. I might have my lakes mixed up.

I have always wanted to dive Tahoe, so I will check out the sight. I am more inspired each time I deal with our 10 foot (and less) vis here in Orange County.

Jon

p.s. Immersed magazine owes me 2 issues!!!!!

 

[jetfixer]

I was with Ann Marie, snakedr and Jdog last year. Awesome diving is crystal clear water. Rubicon Wall is a must! Would love to go back and explore the wrecks in the lake. We dove in 7 mill wetsuits but when I get a dry suit, I would like to go back when it's snowing.

Some pics that I uploaded from our dive there

http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=all&ppuser=29049

 

[Desert_Diver]

I just got back from a (too short) trip to Lake Tahoe South. It was my first trip there (for a wedding) and was amazed by the clarity. Okay, so I know that has to be one cold lake, but boaters often comment on being able to see the bottom in 75-100 feet of water. My question is...has anyone dived Lake Tahoe, and if so, how was it?

I've been there. Warm on the surface. About 50 below the thermocline. I was wearing a 5 mil suit with gloves and booties. Not too bad. About the same as diving Catalina. Viz about 50 or 60 feet. I was there in the summer time. I hope you're not thinking about a winter dive. <shudder>

Art

 

[Desert_Diver]

Is Tahoe the lake with the B-29 that belly landed many years ago and is fairly intact? I think that one is VERY deep also. I might have my lakes mixed up.

The B-29 is in Lake Meade down near Henderson, Nevada. It is deep but I think the national park system demands you have special permission to dive on it. Viz down there is terrrible.

Art