Lake Quonnipaug Dive Report

[ScubaSarus]

Well I think I'm posting the first Lake Quonnipaug dive report. My buddy who just got certified lives next to the lake in North Guilford, CT and it is a popular trout lake. We decided to give it a try. So we parked at the beach area and dove of the beach and went across the lake and back at 40 ft.
The water was fairly clear 20 ft vis but quite dark at the bottom.
I found a fishing pole, on the way back we found a small snark sailboat with the sail attached, a bag of rusty tools, and a large porcelain object with a small metal dome in it covered by algae, as we cleaned the algae off the porcelain and dome we were shocked to discover it was a urinal someone used as a mooring (how gross)., we also found some sort of inflation bag.
Other than that it was just a curiosity dive and I have no desire to really dive it again other than maybe explore the deep back end at 30 ft in the future.

 

[ThatsSomeBadHatHarry]

any life? besides trout.

 

[ScubaSarus]

It was quite desolate down their. We do have weeds growing around the edges and we saw a large snail crawling along the bottom.

 

[all4scuba05]

Sounds better than when I was there doing my cert dives. Vis that day was 2'. It was in March and boy was it freezing. You make me want to go back there now.

 

[ScubaSarus]

I can see a lake freezing in march just after the Feb deep freeze and with the ice finally just melting.

 

[Nautical Dreamer]

I grew up in Guilford and heard rumors of the lake being very deep in some areas. I vaguely remember rumors about Quonnipaug and Lake Gallord being hydrologicly connected.

I have only dove it once at night and was unable to get any deeper than 25 feet. On that dive we stated out near the small rock island just north of beach near the western shore.

If I had to guess I bet the deeper parts are located near the eastern shore close the large verticle rock face. Does any one have a better understanding of the lakes topography and know the location of the deep parts?

I am suprised to hear about 20 ft vis. I will have to give it another shot. The only time I was there the vis was about 5 feet with a water temp of 66 F at 25 feet.

 

[all4scuba05]

OK, it's time for a field trip...

 

[ScubaSarus]

Well it was 20 ft in the shallows at 10 ft and below that it was dark 10 ft.

On the north side of the lake the is a long 40ft stretch easily reached off the beach/parking area. Then as you go south it get real shallow again and then there is a large 30 ft hole on the south end.

We had a map my buddy downloaded and I cant find the web site. He must ave took a long time to look for one. The Middletown library does have a contour map of the pond in a CT Lake survey book on the second floor of the library.

At 30 ft is the milky I think they call the nether layer at this time of the year so any dive at 25-30 will be low vis.