LaminarFlow
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A friend of mine dove a silo somewhere in Texas. Does anyone on here have any advice or contact information for a possible expedition?
Thanks.
Thanks.
Silos
- Thread starter LaminarFlow
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Jay_SMART_Diver
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This link has some great info and a video: http://www.familyscuba.com/index.cfm?SECTION=696
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It's the Valhalla Missile Silo in West Central Texas, most likely...
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=117006
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=117006
Timeliner
Contributor
It's a blast !!!! Go do it !!!
5 stories underground to the dive platform and then from there it's non stop straight down till you hit the tangled up pile of sharp metal at about 110+ feet deep
60 degrees, dark , clear, a bit freaky, way cool !!!
I can't wait to go again.
We went with Surface Interval Scuba out of Arlington in Fall and I hear tales that they "might" be looking at a trip again soon. What ever the case put it on your "A" list of things to do sometime
5 stories underground to the dive platform and then from there it's non stop straight down till you hit the tangled up pile of sharp metal at about 110+ feet deep
60 degrees, dark , clear, a bit freaky, way cool !!!
I can't wait to go again.
We went with Surface Interval Scuba out of Arlington in Fall and I hear tales that they "might" be looking at a trip again soon. What ever the case put it on your "A" list of things to do sometime
Crazyduck
Contributor
It is a four story hike from the surface down to the dive site.
I staged my gear in the control room and then donned the gear there and walked a short distance to the silo. At the silo door you descend down stairs to the water and the stairs are quite steep. Clip everything off you can so you can use both hands or have someone as surface support to collect your loose gear- a very big help. At the water level you are on a floating platform (nothing new for divers.) Then you can hop in or sit down and roll in.
Water temperature WAS 52 degrees and either you use a semidry with seals or a drysuit. Dont forgot to say hello to the water (splash your face.). I would recommend a drysuit. From the surface it is vertical drop down to 110ft at which point you reach the wreckage of the silo. Reportedly, the bottom is about 130ft. I was feeling the narcosis in a rented Semi-dry because my drysuit had not arrived- have to love the irony of that. The walls are obviously curved and my 10watt HID light was almost a pain in the butt. The concrete seemed to absorb the light and at the same time reflected much of it. I almost went to my SL4 backup light.
Since the walls are vertical there is very little depth perception. So it is a total instrumentation dive for depth. They did have vertical lines that you could grab if you needed. This was nice for safety stops. I would recommend good navy class A regulator or something that has scored well on ansi machine test. This is not something you want a cheesy entry level regulator- my choice was Poseidons. However there are lots of great regulators out there.
One the way up there is a service shack and you can stop in and see a few things there. Often it seems people take pictures at the shack or at the bottom- not much in between.
So that leaves exiting the water, climbing up the stairs and heading back to the control room. There we stripped out of the suits and walked up the surface for refreshments and relaxation.
The biggest understatement is moving gear. For me that was a steel lp95 tank, weights, and wet dive gear on the way out. Plus, I brought out my girlfriends gear also. It took specifically 4 trips to get the gear out- 1 for weight, 1 for tanks, 2 for dive bags and odds and ends.
If I did it again. I would take my tanks down to the site (command room.) Then relax and walk back up to the surface where I would gear up and walk directly down to the command room, zip up and then mount up my tanks. In the future I would probably us a weak trimix blend and 32% in an Al40. That would help take the edge off. If nothing else I would recommend EANx32 (nitrox 32) for the dive.
Dive training magazine article- www.dtmag.com/dive-usa/TexasMissileSiloTX.html
If you need specifics- talk to Debra or Allan from SI Scuba they make the trip about once a year.
Good luck, Andrew
I staged my gear in the control room and then donned the gear there and walked a short distance to the silo. At the silo door you descend down stairs to the water and the stairs are quite steep. Clip everything off you can so you can use both hands or have someone as surface support to collect your loose gear- a very big help. At the water level you are on a floating platform (nothing new for divers.) Then you can hop in or sit down and roll in.
Water temperature WAS 52 degrees and either you use a semidry with seals or a drysuit. Dont forgot to say hello to the water (splash your face.). I would recommend a drysuit. From the surface it is vertical drop down to 110ft at which point you reach the wreckage of the silo. Reportedly, the bottom is about 130ft. I was feeling the narcosis in a rented Semi-dry because my drysuit had not arrived- have to love the irony of that. The walls are obviously curved and my 10watt HID light was almost a pain in the butt. The concrete seemed to absorb the light and at the same time reflected much of it. I almost went to my SL4 backup light.
Since the walls are vertical there is very little depth perception. So it is a total instrumentation dive for depth. They did have vertical lines that you could grab if you needed. This was nice for safety stops. I would recommend good navy class A regulator or something that has scored well on ansi machine test. This is not something you want a cheesy entry level regulator- my choice was Poseidons. However there are lots of great regulators out there.
One the way up there is a service shack and you can stop in and see a few things there. Often it seems people take pictures at the shack or at the bottom- not much in between.
So that leaves exiting the water, climbing up the stairs and heading back to the control room. There we stripped out of the suits and walked up the surface for refreshments and relaxation.
The biggest understatement is moving gear. For me that was a steel lp95 tank, weights, and wet dive gear on the way out. Plus, I brought out my girlfriends gear also. It took specifically 4 trips to get the gear out- 1 for weight, 1 for tanks, 2 for dive bags and odds and ends.
If I did it again. I would take my tanks down to the site (command room.) Then relax and walk back up to the surface where I would gear up and walk directly down to the command room, zip up and then mount up my tanks. In the future I would probably us a weak trimix blend and 32% in an Al40. That would help take the edge off. If nothing else I would recommend EANx32 (nitrox 32) for the dive.
Dive training magazine article- www.dtmag.com/dive-usa/TexasMissileSiloTX.html
If you need specifics- talk to Debra or Allan from SI Scuba they make the trip about once a year.
Good luck, Andrew
LaminarFlow:
It's definitely worth having in the logbook just for the unique aspects. Many do it as a winter dive since the water is constant temp in upper 50's and sheltered from outside weather. It's open by arrangement to groups only, you are leasing it for the weekend. I'm pretty sure CHUM will do another trip next winter and Surface Interval likes to do a couple every year. I don't know if anyone has one planned in the next few months. So you'll just have to call around to find a shop that has a trip planned soon. From that Family Scuba page, get into contact with the owner and see if any groups are coming soon and maybe you can hook up with them.
Also, don't take that dive lightly. It's really a pretty advanced dive. It's a strenuous workout getting up and down the stairs. It's an altitude dive (so you have to compensate for that), a cold water dive, a deep dive, and a night dive (dark under 30 feet) all in one.
Primdrumma
Registered
Check this out...
http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/500/medium/P1030287.JPG
I have been to the bottom of a missile silo too! Thats not actually me (I was taking the picture), this is a Minuteman III training silo in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Not nearly as big as an Atlas, but it's still over a hundred feet down. I know it's not diving but thought some may be interested.
http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/500/medium/P1030287.JPG
I have been to the bottom of a missile silo too! Thats not actually me (I was taking the picture), this is a Minuteman III training silo in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Not nearly as big as an Atlas, but it's still over a hundred feet down. I know it's not diving but thought some may be interested.
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