PoPo Diver
Registered
Good evening!!!
Just spent the weekend diving in two great locations. This is the first of 2 reviews. This review is of Pennyroyal Quarry, located in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Please note, I will not discuss actual prices of goods, services, etc. only because those are subject to change. I WILL however, describe if a site or location is, in my humble opinion, competitively priced or overpriced.
A quick run-down on my dive group for this site. There were 8 divers total, ranging from very newly certified to some AOWs with lots of dives and one (myself) super diving nerd. We did two dives on Friday night, one of which a night dive, and then two more dives Saturday morning. Registration was easy and can be done on-line (preferred) or on site. Pennyroyal also issues a card to all divers, to further ease future dives. As long as no info on your waiver changes, they say you can show up, pay your fee, and they will scan your card, then its off to get wet.
As we arrived at the site on Friday evening, we were met with a friendly "Hey now!!" (a true southern greeting) and a handshake. My group set out to rig our gear on their provided pavilions. The pavilions are all connected and share a semi-circular metal roof. They are denoted by very visible numbers and separated by either a clothes hanging rack (to be shared by both) on one side, and a tank rack with ropes for securing on the other (again, to be used by both sides). Now, this setup can be slightly chaotic, more so with a large group (like the one we had). One positive though, the pavilions are situated right next to the shelf of the quarry that over looks the some of the deeper sites. This overlook was about 2-4 feet above the water, and allowed for a very easy giant stride into the water once your geared up. There is also a shore way entry that goes from 0 to about 9 feet, perfect for checking out buoyancy and setting a meeting point for your group. Now for some nitty-gritty-dive specifics:
1. Friday, 09-28-18, air temp: 85 degrees F entry time: 1800, dive time: 53 mins. I went to a max depth of 25 feet, which gave me about 74 degree F water. Plenty of attractions to see and multiple platforms for skills or as we used them, meeting points upon descent. Most of the attractions have lines running to them, so you can follow the lines and see most of the cool stuff.
2. Friday, 09-28-18, air temp 80 F, entry time: 1932, dive time: 47 min. Max depth on this one was around 35 feet which still gave me about 74 degree water. This was a night dive so we could only see what my light was pointed at, still pretty fun. One thing to consider if night diving here, bring some type of headlamp or hanging lantern for back at the pavilion.
3. Saturday, Air temp of 61, entry time: 1018 with a dive time of 25 min. This was our designated deep dive, but most of my party didn't complete it due to the cold. At 93 feet I was smacked in the face with some 52 degree water. I was in a 7 mil suit, 3 mil gloves, and 5 mil hood, and only my face got really cold. At this depth is a really cool boat that you can see, but not a whole lot to penetrate if that's your thing (it's mine). there is a line going to this attraction, but it's a small finger reel line and at points it was buried in the silt pretty deep.
4. Satruday, Air temp of 80 F, entry time: 1300 with a dive time of 38 min. More of a pleasure dive seeing some of the same stuff we saw yesterday. Max depth on this one was 40 feet with a temp of 71 degrees. Some more cool features to see like a fire truck and old sail boat. One thing I liked was there are two (that I found) large plastic culverts available to swim through. These spaces were constricted but easy to swim through. **DISCLAIMER** ONLY SWIM THROUGH THESE THINGS IF YOU ARE EXTREMELY CONFIDENT IN YOUR SKILLS AND EQUIPMENT.
End notes: I would readily recommend this dive site. It is easily accessible and prices are not too bad at all. They are also very eager to help. One of the guys in my group had an issue with his new regulator. He approached the operator of the quarry and he fixed it for him between dives so there was no additional down time. Happy Diving friends!!
Just spent the weekend diving in two great locations. This is the first of 2 reviews. This review is of Pennyroyal Quarry, located in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Please note, I will not discuss actual prices of goods, services, etc. only because those are subject to change. I WILL however, describe if a site or location is, in my humble opinion, competitively priced or overpriced.
A quick run-down on my dive group for this site. There were 8 divers total, ranging from very newly certified to some AOWs with lots of dives and one (myself) super diving nerd. We did two dives on Friday night, one of which a night dive, and then two more dives Saturday morning. Registration was easy and can be done on-line (preferred) or on site. Pennyroyal also issues a card to all divers, to further ease future dives. As long as no info on your waiver changes, they say you can show up, pay your fee, and they will scan your card, then its off to get wet.
As we arrived at the site on Friday evening, we were met with a friendly "Hey now!!" (a true southern greeting) and a handshake. My group set out to rig our gear on their provided pavilions. The pavilions are all connected and share a semi-circular metal roof. They are denoted by very visible numbers and separated by either a clothes hanging rack (to be shared by both) on one side, and a tank rack with ropes for securing on the other (again, to be used by both sides). Now, this setup can be slightly chaotic, more so with a large group (like the one we had). One positive though, the pavilions are situated right next to the shelf of the quarry that over looks the some of the deeper sites. This overlook was about 2-4 feet above the water, and allowed for a very easy giant stride into the water once your geared up. There is also a shore way entry that goes from 0 to about 9 feet, perfect for checking out buoyancy and setting a meeting point for your group. Now for some nitty-gritty-dive specifics:
1. Friday, 09-28-18, air temp: 85 degrees F entry time: 1800, dive time: 53 mins. I went to a max depth of 25 feet, which gave me about 74 degree F water. Plenty of attractions to see and multiple platforms for skills or as we used them, meeting points upon descent. Most of the attractions have lines running to them, so you can follow the lines and see most of the cool stuff.
2. Friday, 09-28-18, air temp 80 F, entry time: 1932, dive time: 47 min. Max depth on this one was around 35 feet which still gave me about 74 degree water. This was a night dive so we could only see what my light was pointed at, still pretty fun. One thing to consider if night diving here, bring some type of headlamp or hanging lantern for back at the pavilion.
3. Saturday, Air temp of 61, entry time: 1018 with a dive time of 25 min. This was our designated deep dive, but most of my party didn't complete it due to the cold. At 93 feet I was smacked in the face with some 52 degree water. I was in a 7 mil suit, 3 mil gloves, and 5 mil hood, and only my face got really cold. At this depth is a really cool boat that you can see, but not a whole lot to penetrate if that's your thing (it's mine). there is a line going to this attraction, but it's a small finger reel line and at points it was buried in the silt pretty deep.
4. Satruday, Air temp of 80 F, entry time: 1300 with a dive time of 38 min. More of a pleasure dive seeing some of the same stuff we saw yesterday. Max depth on this one was 40 feet with a temp of 71 degrees. Some more cool features to see like a fire truck and old sail boat. One thing I liked was there are two (that I found) large plastic culverts available to swim through. These spaces were constricted but easy to swim through. **DISCLAIMER** ONLY SWIM THROUGH THESE THINGS IF YOU ARE EXTREMELY CONFIDENT IN YOUR SKILLS AND EQUIPMENT.
End notes: I would readily recommend this dive site. It is easily accessible and prices are not too bad at all. They are also very eager to help. One of the guys in my group had an issue with his new regulator. He approached the operator of the quarry and he fixed it for him between dives so there was no additional down time. Happy Diving friends!!
