Ottawa to the coast: camp & dive

[gcarter]

2nd week of July the family & I are going to be camping in Tobermory for a week, where son and I will be diving. 3rd week wife and daughter are riding the rails to NYC for a week of whatever it is that girls do when the menfolk are not around, and I was thinking that son and I could head east.

Where is a good spot to go with my tent trailer in NE where we can do some good diving, shore or boat?

We dive wet, but are quite comfortable to 6c - 7c (43f - 45f). AOW, deep, nitrox.

Any suggestions welcome.

 

[KeithG]

Plane ticket to Bonaire! The other province?

Sorry, but at 6c you are talking about very bad hockey conditions. I believe that you may need to be careful to ensure that you do not fall through the ice.

 

[gcarter]

LOL just pointing out that temperature isn't a factor

Although warm would be nice...

 

[KeithG]

There are a bunch o harty northern divers on the board. They have not fallen prey to the siren of warm water wuss diver. Heed their consul. Follow them into the cold cloudy depths.

Or Not.

Damn, but i love to complain about 70 foot viz and 79 degree water. Downside is that I have to pack it all into a few dive trips each year.

So if you yearn for the vacation diver label, foresake your northern roots and follow me...

 

[macado]

Depends where in New England you're looking to head. The most popular place to shore dive is Cape Ann (Gloucester, MA / Rockport, MA).

There are several places where you can camp with tents or trailers. Lots of restaurants, bars, and other tourist attractions. By July, water will be in the mid 55s-60s (12c-15.5c) and lots of people will be diving wet that time of year.

If you end up in Cape Ann, there also several dive boat charters (Daybreaker, Cape Ann Divers, etc) that run out to more interesting dive sites that can't be dove from the shore. I would definitely recommend doing some boat diving if you do happen to be in the area.

I've also hear Bar Harbor, Maine has diving although I don't know about shore diving there as I have never been.

 

[gcarter]

Depends where in New England you're looking to head. The most popular place to shore dive is Cape Ann (Gloucester, MA / Rockport, MA).

There are several places where you can camp with tents or trailers. Lots of restaurants, bars, and other tourist attractions. By July, water will be in the mid 55s-60s (12c-15.5c) and lots of people will be diving wet that time of year.

If you end up in Cape Ann, there also several dive boat charters (Daybreaker, Cape Ann Divers, etc) that run out to more interesting dive sites that can't be dove from the shore. I would definitely recommend doing some boat diving if you do happen to be in the area.

I've also hear Bar Harbor, Maine has diving although I don't know about shore diving there as I have never been.

I have absolutely no preconception of where to go. Are you recommending Cape Ann?

 

[Doppler]

Since you are going to be in Tobermory, why not head west and dive the other side of Lake Huron... the Michigan side.

 

[gcarter]

So the missus – just goes to show you should never actually TALK to your wife – is now suggesting that we do the 1^st week of our vacation at Cape Ann rather than Tobermory so she can do some day trips into Boston. Added benefit is that NYC would be a significantly shorter trip for her 2^nd week, and overall a whole heck of a lot less driving for me. Nor a horrible concept.

Can anyone give me feedback on camping here? Cape Ann Camp Site

Are they diver-friendly? Is it unreasonable to expect to do 2 – 3 tanks / day for 8 or 9 days between boat and shore dives there?

TIA

 

[Stoo]

There's buckets of good diving between Tobermory and the East Coast. Kingston, St. Lawrence including the Empress (and yea it can be done wet... I did it in '79. It took me a week 'til I found L'il Stooey, but I did it!). Then a stop in the Gaspe to see my friend Steve at Le Club Nautique then down to Cape Anne.

I've dove all these places over the years and they're all great! But you'll need about 6 weeks to do it justice!

 

[Mr.X]

So the missus – just goes to show you should never actually TALK to your wife – is now suggesting that we do the 1^st week of our vacation at Cape Ann rather than Tobermory so she can do some day trips into Boston. Added benefit is that NYC would be a significantly shorter trip for her 2^nd week, and overall a whole heck of a lot less driving for me. Nor a horrible concept.

Can anyone give me feedback on camping here? Cape Ann Camp Site

TIA

I've cycled past this site going to Wingershaek Beach. It looked OK from the outside. The Mrs. can board a train to Boston at the West Gloucester Station. And the ride is under an hour. NYC Diving is pretty nice in July, and sometimes you get lucky and the viz. is incredible. Off shore that is.