Lake Tahoe Today

[TracysaCADiver]

Diving in Lake Tahoe is very convenient for me. It is a 2 hour drive to Lake Tahoe as opposed to a 4 hour drive to the Ocean. That and the fact that mean gear comes home already cleaned in fresh water is very nice.

As to the temperature, this time of year is is 39 degrees, so this limits our bottom times. After 60 minutes in the cold water, I will start to get an ice headache.

Life. Well the life is smaller and I usually do see fish and crawdad on my dives, but I did not see any this last dive. Anyway, marine life is not usually the reason people dive in Lake Tahoe much as marine life is not the reason most people dive in caves. It is the structures and history that Lake Tahoe offers (there are a lot of objects in the lake ... some are old but well preserved). Some of the geologic structures in the lake are stunning.

--snip--
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First of all, I'd like to say, Very Nice video...

Secondly - I've heard the same about Tahoe. Not much life but a lot of stuff up (uh, and down ) there. Especially in the bay with the island (gosh darnit the name escapes me right now). I understand that there's an old Model T Ford and a phone down there.

Just watch out for the boat traffic in the Summer time... and the elevation.

 

[ygthad]

Thanks for the video..

 

[ad6e]

Great video .. thanks!

Tahoe is quite desolate, but very interesting none the less. I did the Altitude class at Meeks bay a few years back. Playing with the crawdads can be fun, and saw several brown trout.

This last summer I did the Rubicon wall and the barges in Emerald bay. That was in July where surface temp was in the 70s, but dropped to 45 at 80 or 90ft. That was my first "in the wild" dry suit dive, and I'm really happy for that. Diving that wall is spectacular with a drop off that goes down to 800ft. I could do that again.

 

[Guy Alcala]

Brandon,

<snip>

Guy,

We definitely got a little ways out from where most people kick to from Sand Harbor Beach. It is one of the benefits of using the scooter. We got 3/4 of a mile out pretty quick.

We are head out from the beach at heading of 200 - 220 until we get to about 45 feet. Then we follow the contour of the slope at about 70 feet. If you head out to the right, it can get pretty deep there and there are some walls out there as well.

I am new to this part of the lake and it is the first time I have scooter-ed at Sand Harbor. I am lucky to have a buddy that knows this area of the lake. I hope to have a few more trips out and really get to learn the ways-points and the features.

Mike, were you guys towing the required dive flag? I didn't see any sign of it in the video. I know the requirement to do so outside of the cove kept me inside when I was there, as I was told that Nevada was fairly serious about enforcing the law. I've done all the rest of my dives in Tahoe on the California side, for that reason. Maybe budget problems have caused a cutback in enforcement? Either that, or maybe they figure anyone diving this time of year has minimal boat traffic to deal with, and is unlikely to be a casual recreational diver so is left to themselves.

Thanks for the video, and the answers.

Guy

 

[Guy Alcala]

First of all, I'd like to say, Very Nice video...

Secondly - I've heard the same about Tahoe. Not much life but a lot of stuff up (uh, and down ) there. Especially in the bay with the island (gosh darnit the name escapes me right now). I understand that there's an old Model T Ford and a phone down there.

Just watch out for the boat traffic in the Summer time... and the elevation.

You're thinking of Emerald Bay, as mentioned in the post following yours. There's a bunch of engine blocks (and hundreds of tennis balls; it's a major dog swimming venue) on the bottom at Patton Beach (Carnelian Bay). The fish school I saw, and lots of crawdads, was at Sunnyside. And Rubicon Point Wall is quite nice, as mentioned.

Haven't made it to Emerald Bay to dive yet, although I hiked it from the road down the trail and am considering doing it with dive gear sometime. The trip back up after diving would be pretty nasty (you'd want to take a really loooong surface interval, and do it late in the day in the shade). Doing it by boat would be a lot easier and safer. Still, it looks like it would be a nice place to snorkel/freedive in summer.

In fact, unless I'm just looking for an excuse to breathe through a reg, freediving/snorkeling is probably the best way for me to enjoy diving in Tahoe. There's rarely much difference in what you see at depth, it's just colder,so I might as well enjoy the sun and the surroundings at regular intervals.

Guy

 

[mikemikethepike]

Yes, dive flags are required on the Nevada side, so it is pretty important that you do not surface away from your dive flag or you will get a ticket. Even then, I have known of a Ranger following divers on a jet ski to them even though they only surfaced near a dive flag.
Of course towing a dive flag behind your DPV is not really practical and the possibility of getting ticket for not towing one is something that I keep in mind. I rely on shooting an SMB if I needed to surface for an emergency and accept that I may get a ticket for not towing a dive flag. Oh, and I also drove 5 to 10 MPH faster that the posted speed limit on the way to the dive site and I have been ticketed for that before. The worse thing is in the summer time then you use a dive flag and the ski boats use them as a slalum. That gets annoying. Beware of boaters.

Mike, were you guys towing the required dive flag? I didn't see any sign of it in the video. I know the requirement to do so outside of the cove kept me inside when I was there, as I was told that Nevada was fairly serious about enforcing the law. I've done all the rest of my dives in Tahoe on the California side, for that reason. Maybe budget problems have caused a cutback in enforcement? Either that, or maybe they figure anyone diving this time of year has minimal boat traffic to deal with, and is unlikely to be a casual recreational diver so is left to themselves.

Thanks for the video, and the answers.

Guy

 

[Guy Alcala]

Yes, dive flags are required on the Nevada side, so it is pretty important that you do not surface away from your dive flag or you will get a ticket. Even then, I have known of a Ranger following divers on a jet ski to them even though they only surfaced near a dive flag.

Of course towing a dive flag behind your DPV is not really practical and the possibility of getting ticket for not towing one is something that I keep in mind. I rely on shooting an SMB if I needed to surface for an emergency and accept that I may get a ticket for not towing a dive flag. Oh, and I also drove 5 to 10 MPH faster that the posted speed limit on the way to the dive site and I have been ticketed for that before. The worse thing is in the summer time then you use a dive flag and the ski boats use them as a slalum. That gets annoying. Beware of boaters.

My understanding is that the fines for violating the dive flag law are heftier than a speeding ticket (assuming you aren't driving some god-awful amount over the limit; it's been many years since I got one of THOSE), but I've been unable to find anything that would indicate how much they are. With the possible exceptions of Stateline Wall and Cave Rock S.P., neither of which I've tried yet, I find that sites on the California side take care of my diving Jones as well as those in Nevada, so I just avoid the hassle. Diving there in summer I'm going to have to deal with drunk boaters and PWC bozos regardless, and many of them are, as you say, attracted to dive flags. So, I figure it's safer to do without, and assume they're all trying to run me over until proven otherwise.

Guy

 

[mikemikethepike]

I cannot find the amount of the fine for the diver flag law. I thought the ticket was $225, but I am not at all sure.

:questionmark: Maybe someone knows for sure? :questionmark:

NRS 488.310 Display of diver&#8217;s flag required; operation of vessel within 100 feet of flag prohibited; operation of vessel within 200 feet of flag limited; exception for emergencies.

1. A person shall display a diver&#8217;s flag when diving or swimming below the water&#8217;s surface with the aid of a breathing device. The diver&#8217;s flag must be:

(a) At least 12 inches in height by 12 inches in width with a red background and a white diagonal stripe that is one-fifth the width of the flag;

(b) Attached to a float, buoy or boat which is visible to approaching vessels and which, between sunset and sunrise, has a light attached; and

(c) Prominently displayed within 100 feet of the location of the diver or swimmer.

2. A person shall not display a diver&#8217;s flag on the waters of this state unless he or she is diving or swimming below the water&#8217;s surface with the aid of a breathing device, in the vicinity of the diver&#8217;s flag.

3. Except in the case of an emergency, a person shall not operate a vessel other than the diver&#8217;s support vessel within 100 feet of a diver&#8217;s flag.

4. Except in the case of an emergency, a person who operates a vessel at a distance of more than 100 feet but less than 200 feet of a diver&#8217;s flag shall operate that vessel at a speed that leaves a flat wake, but in no case may the vessel be operated at a speed greater than 5 nautical miles per hour.

(Added to NRS by 1991, 853; A 1993, 1025)

 

[mikemill]

(c) Prominently displayed within 100 feet of the location of the diver or swimmer.

I guess you can't dive below 100 ft....

 

[Ben_ca]

I guess you can't dive below 100 ft....

You have to get a Tech rated dive flag for that one