jerseydiver123
Guest
I just returned from the Hunterdon Scuba Ice Diving Course/Trip to Lake Champlain, VT.
The conditions were very good. The ice was 22 inches thick, water temp was 32 degrees, air temps were mid 30's , and not very windy. Visability was about 30+ feet. We dove at two locations, Birch Island and 'The Pinnacle'. Birch Island had a wall that dropped to about 40'. There's no deep diving here, especially since you're tethered to a 100' line. The Pinnacle was a really nice dive. There were a bunch of bass hanging around that site.
The class itself was run very well by the local dive shop, Victory Sports. They were very helpful. On Saturday, after doing three dives, I was removing my drysuit and the neck seal tore (about a 4" long tear, it became a v-neck) One of the guys at the shop had an extra Viking drysuit with a dry hood and dry gloves that he let me use on Sunday. I was able to do a 27 minute dive with it and still be toasty warm.
It was fun to try ice diving, but I'm not sure I would make a habit of it. There is a lot of work that goes into preparing the site and managing the dives, but it is definitely worth doing at least once. My most memorable experience would be driving out onto the Lake in my truck from the boat ramp.
Thanks to Hunterdon Scuba (www.hunterdonscuba.com) for arranging the trip and Victory Sports for a great experience.
The conditions were very good. The ice was 22 inches thick, water temp was 32 degrees, air temps were mid 30's , and not very windy. Visability was about 30+ feet. We dove at two locations, Birch Island and 'The Pinnacle'. Birch Island had a wall that dropped to about 40'. There's no deep diving here, especially since you're tethered to a 100' line. The Pinnacle was a really nice dive. There were a bunch of bass hanging around that site.
The class itself was run very well by the local dive shop, Victory Sports. They were very helpful. On Saturday, after doing three dives, I was removing my drysuit and the neck seal tore (about a 4" long tear, it became a v-neck) One of the guys at the shop had an extra Viking drysuit with a dry hood and dry gloves that he let me use on Sunday. I was able to do a 27 minute dive with it and still be toasty warm.
It was fun to try ice diving, but I'm not sure I would make a habit of it. There is a lot of work that goes into preparing the site and managing the dives, but it is definitely worth doing at least once. My most memorable experience would be driving out onto the Lake in my truck from the boat ramp.
Thanks to Hunterdon Scuba (www.hunterdonscuba.com) for arranging the trip and Victory Sports for a great experience.
