Sandusky Mooring Project in Straits

[sleepdiver]

There has been a discussion going on another thread - "Great Diving Conditions in the Straits". In a very positive way, it turned into a discussion on the need to place, and how to place a mooring block near the Sandusky to attach the mooring line and avoid damage to it. If you want to learn more specifics please go to that thread.

Because we have a limited amount of time to reply to each idea, we invite you to post your ideas on this thread. Just please do not be disturbed if no reply is posted. They will all be accumulated and considered before moving forward on anything. You can also pm me if you prefer. We will post a specific plan (or alternate plans) for how this will be done with reasonably accurate cost figures as soon as we can based on using your suggestions (this was also a very fine suggestion someone made). You can comment on it before anyone proceeds and you will all be invited to participate as appropriate (we don't want to stumble over each other).

Any suggestions will be passed along to the board of the Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Preserve Association.

If anyone wants to do more (have their own fund-raising project), has any ideas about this subject and/or be involved in the process of examing ideas to come up with a specific plan, please email the St. Ignace Chamber of Commerce (sicc@lighthouse.net)and leave your name, phone number and email address and any message you need to send.

If anyone wants to contribute now, you can send it to ATTN: Janet Peterson, St. Ignace Chamber of Commerce, 560 State Street, St. Ignace, MI 49781. Please mark it "Sandusky Mooring" and she will set it aside for that purpose. For now, that is the only reason we ask for contributions.

If this begins to raise funds, we will periodically post the progress (someone had a great idea to do this). If this goes nowhere, Janet will return any money to you or ask if you want it put to any other purpose.

It will be great if divers can solve this problem on their own. I am sorry we never turned to you before.

With that said, please offer your suggestions or contact Janet.

Thank you to everyone for all their strong interest in this.

 

[bladephotog]

Why not try an Adopt A Shipwreck type of program? Try to find businesses willing to donate money for a mooring in exchange for their name on the mooring, like they do on highways. You could also send them a photo of the shipwreck they adopted.

 

[parrothead600]

I am fairly new to the scene (certified less than 3 years) so forgive my ignorance. I am curious as to how other preserves in the state fund their bouys.
I do know that the wreck of the 3 Brothers @ South Manitou Island is boueyed by Scuba North, but they also run charters to it. I also make it a point to support this buisness when I'm in the area.
So far, we haven't heard from anyone from any of the other preserves in the state. If we had an idea of what they do, maybe someone could improve on that idea.

 

[sleepdiver]

Hi. I had not intended to reply to posts here. The plan is to take any and as many suggestions that anyone has to offer and then consider them. The idea being to make the process open to ideas from any source and arrive at a consensus proposal that may be able to be implemented. In other words, let divers find solutions to diving problems without anyone intervening to tell them how to do something.

That said, you have a good question about what other preserves are doing. Alpena has an aggressive program to place blocks and expensive buoys because NOAA operates the program there as part of the Federal Marine Sanctuary. The local preserve committee supplements this by buoying some wrecks not buoyed by NOAA. Joe Sobzak is much more familiar with this.

Otherwise, I believe the Straits (with the exception of Alger & Sanilac) is the most active preserve placing buoys. Alger and Sanilac have charter operators running on a regular basis in the summer who may be placing buoys themselves throughout the preserve, I am not certain of the quality or source. I do not think they have placed blocks but I may be wrong. Other preserves try to place something on at least some of their wrecks but have a less systematic program.

Most other locations may have a line and jug placed by informally divers.

There is a need to buoy the Straits, because it is very popular (Sandusky, Cedarville, etc.) by operators and individual divers with their own boats. One full time operator provides transportation to the sites to place buoys. However, no one except the preserve committee provides buoys, etc. The local preserve committee has placed buoys because its members have believed in promoting diving there and have a real interest in its history. That is why it attends tradeshows, publishes articles, cooperates with film and magazine projects and makes presentations to historical societies and other groups. There is a core of people who do this. Attempts to expand it with memberships has generally failed even when this program is explained.

The problem for the preserve committee now is that a block on the Sandusky is needed as soon as possible. It is supporting too many projects for it to do this and continue on a level expected by divers without more of their participation with both financial support and ideas.

We have gotten on this thread because most divers are not aware that the preserve committee provides this service. Many divers actually think the state does this (some innocently come to the air station to ask it to report a missing buoy to the state). Others think the charter operator does. In fairness to the charter, while it benefits from the buoys, it has spent a fair amount of money providing transportation to place and pull buoys at no cost. There is no local dive shop to place buoys and have divers return the favor by buying equipment. The local market will not support one (the population is just too small) and most divers qualified to dive there usually own and bring their own gear.

With all that said, here is a list of board members of the board of the Michigan Underwater Preserve Council with their email addresses. This not an official MUPC list, it is one kept by our local committee. Mark Kistner is the secretary and has the official list. However, I believe it is accurate as of June 2007. I am sure they will be happy to tell you what they are doing.

ALGER:
Joe Lindquist; joseph271@jamadots.com – Alger
Linda Laraway; llaraway@wildblue.net – Alger
DETOUR:
Matt Crews; diversberth@yahoo.com - Detour
Ron Bloomfield; bchsrb@mindspring.com - Detour
KEWEENAW:
Jake and Laura; asuperiordive@webtv.net - Keewenaw
Jake and Laura; (each has one vote same email) - Keewenaw
MANITOU:
Thaddius Bedford; lakeexplorer@yahoo.com - Manitou
Stan Stock; wstock7795@chartermi.net - Manitou
Lee Wilson; dmdiver@chartermi.net – Manitou alternate
MARQUETTE:
Tom Buchkoe; tbuchkoe@chartermi.net - Marquette
Kurt Fosburg; captkfosburg@yahoo.com - Marquette
SANILAC:
Gary Venet; scuba4us@hotmail.com - Sanilac
Linda White; bernina@tir.com - Sanilac
SOUTHWEST:
Gordon Chapman; wrecktreker@hotmail.com - Southwest
Peggy Kurpinski; peggy@goscuba.net – Southwest
STRAITS:
Larry Sanders; straitsdiver@hotmail.com - Straits
Mark Kistner divemichigan@sbcglobal.net - Straits
THUMB:
Chris Roth; croth@mecampbell.com - Thumb
Tom Carriveau; tcarriveau@geminigroup.net -Thumb
THUNDER BAY:
John McConnell; johnamacc@yahoo.com / John@DiveAlpena.com - Thunder Bay
Joe Sobzak; JoeS@divealpena.com - Thunder Bay
WHITEFISH:
Bill Ferguson; wcferguson@excite.com - Whitefish
Darryl Ertel; darrylertel@earthlink.net – Whitefish
Sarah Wilde; sarahwilde@earthlink.net - Whitefish alternate

Janet Peterson; sicc@lighthouse.net – Ex Officio MUPC Treasurer, no-vote

I'll try not to post here agin. It is really meant to receive your ideas. Thanks.

 

[diver_paula]

Any new status on this?

Paula

 

[dsc2679]

A very generous member of the Straits Preserve (SMUP) bought and donated two mooring devices, that we are hoping will do the trick. The system is called Helix mooring system and is a device that you screw into the lake bottom, which is mostly clay, with an occasional rock thrown in to add to the challenge. We're thinking of trying one off the stern of the Sandusky, clear of the bow sprit. If it works, we'll probably use them on some of the other wrecks too. We're also going to try to improve and promote SMUP fund raising efforts next year. The Straits really are (is?), arguably, one of the best Great Lakes dive destinations, but I'm biased

 

[diver_paula]

The Straits really are (is?), arguably, one of the best Great Lakes dive destinations, but I'm biased

No argument here!

A very generous member of the Straits Preserve (SMUP) bought and donated two mooring devices, that we are hoping will do the trick. The system is called Helix mooring system and is a device that you screw into the lake bottom, which is mostly clay, with an occasional rock thrown in to add to the challenge. We're thinking of trying one off the stern of the Sandusky, clear of the bow sprit. If it works, we'll probably use them on some of the other wrecks too.

Great news! Hopefully it works.

Thank you for the update.

Paula

 

[ereediver]

I don't know if you have been in contact with or heard of The Ohio Maritime Archaeological Survey Team, ( MAST ) Ohio MAST Inc. Maritime Archaeological Survey Team, Inc. They have been very instrumental in the surveying, preserving and placing bouys on Lake Erie shipwrecks. They have bouys on six wrecks so far. They maybe able to give you some guidance

 

[alpenadiver]

sleepdiver: The local preserve committee supplements this by buoying some wrecks not buoyed by NOAA. Joe Sobzak is much more familiar with this.

I also sit on the TBUPC, and help Joe setting the buoys. the preserve committee placed "marker" buoys on the shallower wrecks, and karst formations near shore we would chain the buoy to a nearby rock if possible. but the majority of the time the markers were "tide" jugs tied off to the wrecks, due to the fact that the jugs would end up being cut off sometime during the summer.

Here in Alpena, NOAA was using old train wheels for there sinkers, this year they switched over to using a pyramid shaped cement sinker because of the scarcity of old train wheels. One big obstacle even NOAA is having in placing buoys close to the shipping channel is with the Lake Carriers Union or the Company itself they will not allow any buoys near the shipping channels.

 

[ComputerJoe]

Mike,

Sorry I missed you today but it's the Lake Carriers Association. The Association is a common representitive of the shipping companies and they were essiential in settin up shipping lanes after the sinking of the Goodyear, I believe. They seem to have a policy of objecting to the DEQ permit application to place an anchor on the bottom within 1 mile of any of their course lines thereby effectively preventing placing of mooring buoys with a seperate anchor. Therefore most/all of the buoys in Michigan, other than Thunder Bay, are tied off to the shipwreck. This is no problem on a steel wreck or if you have something substantial to tie to like a boiler to tie to. The problem with wooden schooners like the Sandusky is the lack of anything substaintial. The windlass seems like it would fill the need but that was proven incorrect.

Michigan Underwater Preserves and all the other State organizations are going to have to deal with the Lake Carriers Association to come up with an acceptable means of buoying these wrecks within 1 mile of their course lines or we will continue to tear them apart.