I'm sure some will say ugh!!!...but i'm curious

[motorcitydiver]

has anyone dived the Detroit River? If so do you have any locations on where to enter and exit? Have you found anything interesting (excluding dead bodies):death2: ?

My site is www.motorcitydivers.com but i've never been in that river. I guess I should at least try it once.

 

[CMAN]

I talked to a guy that was working at Sea Side Dive Shop in St. Clair Shores and was a member of "The River Rats" dive club, and he had been doing dives in the Detroit River. I always thought it was illegal but he said there was some "flaw" in the city ordinance that prevented them from prosecuting "offenders". I wasn't willing to chance getting a ticket (or being arrested) so I never followed up on his offer to join him.

 

[motorcitydiver]

I never heard anything about an ordinance there, I guess i'll check into it. I saw a program on TLC or the Discovery channel sometime at the beginning of the year and it was about people overcoming their fears. The guy in this episode was from Detroit and an avid diver. He dove the river all the time but wouldn't go in the ocean because of his fear of sharks. They took him to the Bahamas or somewhere to help him overcome it. Anyway, like I said, he dove it all the time but I don't remember them saying anything about it being illegal. I'm not sure if diving the river would be worth a ticket.

Thanks for the information.

 

[abernier]

i have heard that is is a very difficult river to dive because of the current

 

[motorcitydiver]

I'm sure it's fast but i'm used to fast current. Most of my river diving is done jumping in at the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron. That location is where Lake Huron meets the St. Claire River. Pretty smokin' current most of the time. I've been spooked there before.

 

[CMAN]

I'm sure it's fast but i'm used to fast current. Most of my river diving is done jumping in at the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron. That location is where Lake Huron meets the St. Claire River. Pretty smokin' current most of the time. I've been spooked there before.

Not to highjack the thread but where exactly do you enter at the Blue Water bridge? I have been entering at the Light Ship because there is no rail to climb over and the sea wall dips down to ground level and we exit at the YMCA.

 

[motorcitydiver]

I park in the first lot South of the bridge, change, and walk right up under the bridge on the boardwalk. We just climb over the rail and jump in. I have gotten in at the boat and gotten out at the YMCA but that was a few years ago. I'm actually looking to start jumping in further down from the bridge. I like the Y because it's pretty easy to get in and out.

Have you been on the Monarch? It's a tug on the Canadian side just South of the bridge. You get in next to the casino, at an area with a bunch of old pilings. You head up river about 30 yards to where the sea wall is collapsed and you'll find a cable strung that takes you right out to the tug. It's a pretty cool dive and not too deep. I don't recall how deep but if I remember right it's about 50 ft.

There is also two wrecks right in the channel just north of the light. The Trumble (sic?) and the Ben Hur.

 

[CMAN]

I was talking to the guy that runs the Dive-Inn in Port Huron earlier this summer and he told me that they enter somewhere north of the bridge and drift down to the YMCA but I didn't get enough details about the entry. I have dove the Monarch (about 18 yrs. ago) a few times. I heard that they are building condo's there and the access is going to be gone. I've also heard of divers entering north of the bridge on the Canadian side and drifting pass the wrecks then swimming toward shore (Canada) and catching the eddy current back to the cable to the Monarch (I've never tried it). I have dove the Tremble and Ben Hur but we just drifted by them (current is pretty fast there).

 

[motorcitydiver]

If I'm not mistaken I think you can get in at the paper mill just north of the bridge and drift down. I think it's a paper mill or at least used to be. If you're interested in hooking up this spring let me know. There's a group of people out of Marine City who dive the river all year long. I got in touch with them at www.brethrenofthecoast.net

 

[Eeyore48104]

The owner of our dive center does all sorts of diving inthe Detroit River. I haven't made it yet but plan to next year.
Call Rich at Divers Inc in Ann Arbor. (I don't know if a number will get thru but it's 734-971-7770.)