Dean810
Contributor
I am going to repeat myself a little here from my comments I made on Duane's Dunderberg report, so sorry to those that read that already.
Did probably my last charter of the year yesterday on the Northerner and Mahoning up in Port Washington, Wisconsin. This was my second trip to the Northerner and my first on the Mahoning. Didn't know if we would make it out or not, since wave conditions were iffy, but decided to risk the two hour drive to make it. Very glad we did! There were some big rollers on the lake, but for the most part quite manageable and not choppy as you sometimes get. Some people did get sick, but I was well medicated and had no ill effects.
I jumped at the chance to do this dive because the Northerner is by far one of my favorite wrecks. I and many others have sung the praises of this little two masted schooner that sank in 1868, and yet, most people I know have never been on it. The reason it is so great? It is almost completely intact. If you want to know what a real working schooner looked like in the mid 19th century, visit this wreck. It is in the deep recreational diving range. It can get down to 130 ft, but you can pretty much see all the best parts staying in the 120-125 range. A portion of the bowsprit remains, and underneath it, a figurehead. For a little working schooner carrying cord wood, that's quit remarkable. The figurehead is very similar to the scrolly ramshead you can see, recreated, on the Sandusky up in the Straits of Mackinac. The cord wood is still in the holds, some of it still neatly stacked. The railings are intact. The hull is in excellent condition. The windlass looks operational. Apparently, the mainmast was upright and in position in the recent past, but it is knocked over now
Water was cold! I guess it should be this time of year. About 41 degree at the bottom and never warming up that much on the way back up. Visibility.......at least 80 ft! There was never a time on this dive that I couldn't see the entire length of the boat, and it is 78 ft long. A great dive.
My second dive was on the Mahoning. I have been wanting to visit this brig since it was "rediscovered" a couple or so years ago. There has been some back and forth on who found this boat, and I am not going to get into THAT discussion! But it was a great dive too. This boat is broken up, but still with plenty to see. It went down in 1864. There is nice windlass, deadeyes here and there, a great deal of flattened structure, and lot of hand trucks used for moving cargo. What surprised me the most was that off to the side of the wreck there was a steam boiler. I found out later that this was the bilge pump. Obviously, it couldn't save this boat.
Visibility was also very good, and water also very cold. The viz was compromised somewhat by the many clouds of tiny fish fry that was all over this wreck like locust.
Not too many charters go to these sites. Diver's Delight does on a fairly regular basis, and that was the charter I was on. Ralph charged a bargain price on this trip and that really sweetened the deal. The economy made me swear off charters for the rest of the year, but I couldn't pass this up. His boat is certainly "no-frills" and not everyone may like it. It is a mode of transportation to get to the wreck and that's all. There is no head, but he does come back in to harbor between dives. Everyone suits up before getting on the boat because there is not a lot of room to do so once you are on. It is very fast however. You get out and come back quickly, but be prepared for a bumpy ride! Getting back on the boat after a dive is a little tricky. You need to remove your gear in the water, which they haul up, then take off your fins before coming up the ladder. I have done this before, but it is certainly not convenient and may not be for everyone. When I did it this time, I forgot to pay attention to my little OMS dive light I had strapped to my hand, and lost it in the process. However, I was very glad he gave me the opportunity to make these great dives and to close out my Great Lakes diving season.
Did probably my last charter of the year yesterday on the Northerner and Mahoning up in Port Washington, Wisconsin. This was my second trip to the Northerner and my first on the Mahoning. Didn't know if we would make it out or not, since wave conditions were iffy, but decided to risk the two hour drive to make it. Very glad we did! There were some big rollers on the lake, but for the most part quite manageable and not choppy as you sometimes get. Some people did get sick, but I was well medicated and had no ill effects.
I jumped at the chance to do this dive because the Northerner is by far one of my favorite wrecks. I and many others have sung the praises of this little two masted schooner that sank in 1868, and yet, most people I know have never been on it. The reason it is so great? It is almost completely intact. If you want to know what a real working schooner looked like in the mid 19th century, visit this wreck. It is in the deep recreational diving range. It can get down to 130 ft, but you can pretty much see all the best parts staying in the 120-125 range. A portion of the bowsprit remains, and underneath it, a figurehead. For a little working schooner carrying cord wood, that's quit remarkable. The figurehead is very similar to the scrolly ramshead you can see, recreated, on the Sandusky up in the Straits of Mackinac. The cord wood is still in the holds, some of it still neatly stacked. The railings are intact. The hull is in excellent condition. The windlass looks operational. Apparently, the mainmast was upright and in position in the recent past, but it is knocked over now
Water was cold! I guess it should be this time of year. About 41 degree at the bottom and never warming up that much on the way back up. Visibility.......at least 80 ft! There was never a time on this dive that I couldn't see the entire length of the boat, and it is 78 ft long. A great dive.
My second dive was on the Mahoning. I have been wanting to visit this brig since it was "rediscovered" a couple or so years ago. There has been some back and forth on who found this boat, and I am not going to get into THAT discussion! But it was a great dive too. This boat is broken up, but still with plenty to see. It went down in 1864. There is nice windlass, deadeyes here and there, a great deal of flattened structure, and lot of hand trucks used for moving cargo. What surprised me the most was that off to the side of the wreck there was a steam boiler. I found out later that this was the bilge pump. Obviously, it couldn't save this boat.
Visibility was also very good, and water also very cold. The viz was compromised somewhat by the many clouds of tiny fish fry that was all over this wreck like locust.
Not too many charters go to these sites. Diver's Delight does on a fairly regular basis, and that was the charter I was on. Ralph charged a bargain price on this trip and that really sweetened the deal. The economy made me swear off charters for the rest of the year, but I couldn't pass this up. His boat is certainly "no-frills" and not everyone may like it. It is a mode of transportation to get to the wreck and that's all. There is no head, but he does come back in to harbor between dives. Everyone suits up before getting on the boat because there is not a lot of room to do so once you are on. It is very fast however. You get out and come back quickly, but be prepared for a bumpy ride! Getting back on the boat after a dive is a little tricky. You need to remove your gear in the water, which they haul up, then take off your fins before coming up the ladder. I have done this before, but it is certainly not convenient and may not be for everyone. When I did it this time, I forgot to pay attention to my little OMS dive light I had strapped to my hand, and lost it in the process. However, I was very glad he gave me the opportunity to make these great dives and to close out my Great Lakes diving season.
