Andrew Richardson:
I am a new diver who's company has offices in Chicago. I might be travelling there in the next few weeks.
What the best novice dive sites & where should I get my air?
I'll bring everything with me except the tank & weights - those I'll rent locally.
So where should I plan to dive?
Andrew
Toronto, Canada (so I know about cold!)
In what part of the Chicago area will you be?
If you spend much time on this forum, you will find that many of us make an almost weekly pilgramage to the local quarries. They are about the only place where you can do shore dives. Two stand out. One of the favorite places is Haigh Quarry in Kankakee, which is about an hour south of Chicago. Its a well run place with depths up to about 80 feet with a bunch of stuff at the bottom to look at, including fish such as Bluegills, Northern, Perch, Muskies, and Paddlefish. The other spot is Pearl Lake, also a quarry, which is located about the same distance north near South Beloit. Both places are good places to improve your skills and just get wet. They all rent scuba equipment and tanks.
Eventually, you will want to do what most of us value the most, which is Great Lakes Wreck diving here in Lake Michigan. There are a number of charters that operate in the Chicago area, mainly out of downtown Chicago, Waukegan, and East Chicago Indiana. It is also not very far to Milwaukee Wisconsin, which also has a number of good charters. Depths for a number of very good wrecks are well within recreational diving range.
Dive shops are all over.
When you find yourself over here, give us a shout, and there will be plenty of people willing you steer you in the right direction!
Welcome!
