Is there any shore diving near Ashtabula Ohio

[wmspdi]

I am on vacation this week and want to take my teenage son on some Lake Erie shore diving. Nothing to aggressive or deep, just some time to get wet, hone his skills a little, and maybe see something interesting. I thought about Whitestar, but it is a bit of a drive, and this time of year the viz is running a little low for keeping an eye on a rookie diver (he's a new PADI OW). I read Erie vis was running between 40 to 130 feet this weekend.

I just bought him a new regulator rig (I got tired breaking down my doubles kit for him to use) so cash is a little tight right now. Between the gasoline, air fills and dive fees a trip to Whitestar from Youngstown, Ohio would set me back well over $100. Also an Erie boat charter is out of the question at this time.

Any shore dives (60' or less) between, say east of Cleveland and west of Erie PA would work for us. We both have scooters so we could ride out from shore while towing the dive float/flag. Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[pcarlson1911]

Anything in the shallows near Cleveland wil not have vis more than 10' anytime soon. We hae had two days with small craft advisories and 4-6 footers. In addition, there has been a large fish kill due to temp inversion. This will degrade vis even more.

I was on the Craftsman on Sunday and vis was 5'. The Craftsman is in 45' of water a mile off of Avon Point. The 117th St. Wreck is a mile north of 117th St. on the west side of Cleveland and 10 days ago it was no better than 10'.

Out in the deeper water, things are better. On Sunday we also did the Sand Merchant and had 15' in 65' of water.

Vis should be betteron the Eastend ofthe lake, but I can't imagine it being much better on the east side of town?

Some people Dive the "Stadium Reef" which is the breakwall that separates the Cleveland Harbor from Lake Erie. The outside of the wall is supposed to be littered with anchors, but this would be a lonnng swim even with a scooter, and the boat traffic is very heavy on weekends.

Come to think about it, Todd, an employee at Just Add Water in Willoughby shore dives on the east side. Call the shop and he might have a suggestion. Phone: 440-942-7575

Goodluck!
pc