NC Quarries that are open to diving?

[TONY CHANEY]

Please do and I look forward to it. I’ll pay the fee!!!

 

[Steve_C]

Please do and I look forward to it. I’ll pay the fee!!!

MLSP is just outside the little town of Wendell. There is a nice local coffee shop in downtown Wendell (all three blocks of it). A hot Latte after the dives sounds good.

 

[WinfieldNC]

Mystery Lake Scuba Park in Wendell NC (just east of Raleigh) has been open since last summer. It's a 15 acre lake in a beautiful, wooded setting. The owners are divers, so they understand our needs. I have dove there many times, and am impressed with all they have done to make it a great place to dive.

They're put in picnic tables and some very innovative gear set-up benches designed by a member of their scuba club. There's a porta-jon on site, and they have recently installed an enclosed changing room. For chilly surface intervals, there's a fire pit with firewood stacked nearby.

Along with a team of volunteers, they've also installed underwater attractions. These include a guideline that runs the entire perimeter; a couple of sunken motorboats; some giant spools for swim-throughs; several areas of statues (go see the mermaid and the Garden of Saints); an air bell; and an underwater maze to swim through. They have recently acquired a bus to sink.

During the 2017 season, the lake was accessible by giant stride from the dock or wade in/and out at South Beach, which sometimes got congested. Over the winter, they are working on building out another access area, East Woods, that's about a third of the way to the north side. East Woods has easier access to shallow water and training platforms, and is well-shaded for those hot days, so it will be super popular this summer.

Go check it out. Mystery Lake is close enough to Fantasy that you can easily dive both the same day. They are a different experience. We're blessed to have two great dive quarries this close to Raleigh.

Don't know about you, but I'm getting a season pass to Mystery Lake this year.

So, is Mystery Lake offering season passes? I wasn't aware that was possible. Can you point me in the right direction?

Thanks,

Win

 

[Steve_C]

So, is Mystery Lake offering season passes? I wasn't aware that was possible. Can you point me in the right direction?

Thanks,

Win

I was talking to one of the owners the other day. They are seriously considering different options for 2018 including season passes but as of Jan 19, 2018, they did not have season passes or any other sort of pass other than the standard 1 day pass. Still trying to sort out what, if anything, works well for them and for the diving community.

 

[TONY CHANEY]

Are there and diving restrictions? i.e. Solo, rebreathers, DPV, etc.

 

[Steve_C]

Are there and diving restrictions? i.e. Solo, rebreathers, DPV, etc.

It is run by divers who care about safety (and one owner is a lawyer so she knows about liabitlity) So pretty much any diving you have the training for is ok, So for someone with standard OW or AOW training you should have a buddy and dive within NDL.
-Solo is ok if you have solo training. I imagine various instructor ratings etc would also qualify. Best to check with them directly as what else counts as solo training. I have seen several solo divers there.
-Rebreathers are ok. That is true for Fantasy Lake also.
-DPV are ok. Some have already been used especially for those doing exploration work.
-I imagine deco is ok but best to let them know so that they do not start to worry if you are down a long time. They usually have somebody around.

Spearfishing or hook and line fishing is not allowed. Whatever you find needs to stay. Unless you find a hand gun or some other type of potential evidence, then you should notify them. One stolen car was already found and recovered. It was an abandoned quarry for a long time. So who knows what has been hidden there.

No moving of stuff without permission. So would need to check if you wanted to practice with lift bags.

 

[tbone1004]

and to follow up on @Steve_C 's evidence comment, lawyer owners husband is a cop, so should be pretty easy if you find something like that. I can all but guarantee you'd find one if you went in with a metal detector though...

 

[TONY CHANEY]

Great advice and thanks.

 

[Steve_C]

Oh, one final comment, Mystery Lake and Fantasy Lake are about 22 minutes apart and each have a very different vibe so you can make a weekend of varied quarry diving.

 

[RandomGuy1]

@TONY CHANEY When you head down, I wouldn't mind tagging along if you want the company. FYI, this is Rich.