Stockton Lake Conditions 8-11

[Dark Wolf]

Well, I ran down to Stockton Lake on Saturday to try out my new external flash. Water has dropped about 4 feet in the last month which made me hopeful for better vis. I set up shop on the East side of 215 bridge, put out dive flags and started getting my gear around. Since I didn't anticipate a long or deep dive, I went with a single tank and not my twins. Entered the water about 11 A.M. and dropped to about 15 ft. Vis was 10-12 ft., temp about 87 degrees. Took compass reading and began descent. Vis was still decent at the 30 ft. mark, and temp starting to drop off. By the time I hit 40 ft., vis was down to about 3-4 ft. and temp was in the 60's. Tried my camera out at this depth a few times with poor results (of course, I am new to this picture taking stuff!!). Continued descent and bottomed at 52 ft. Vis was about 6", temp was about 54 degrees. Had to turn flashlight on at about 45 ft. Man, there was a lot of stuff floating in the water! Played with the camera and practiced some navigation for about 20 minutes before heading to shallower (and lighter) water. Spent some time at 25 ft. and exited the water. All in all a fun dive, got to experiment with the strobe and work on some navigation (pleased to say that I came up within 6 ft. of where I wanted, though I think that luck might have played into some of that! ).

Stockton has been very challenging this year due to the massive amounts of rain that we have received. But, it is close to home and I still love to dive there. Anyone that wants to try it out, let me know!
Happy Diving,

Dark Wolf

 

[SteveC]

Thats about the same conditions we had a couple of weeks ago. It's an interesting and fun dive above 20', but there seems to be definite muck line.
I have never seen so many fish in any local lake.

 

[Dark Wolf]

I do see a lot of fish at Stockton, and I sure hate that the conditions are so bad this year. I have been a free-diver at Stockton for about 14 years, and this is one of the worst years I have seen. This spring, I was seeing around 30 ft. vis. When I was free-diving, I saw conditions with 20-25 ft. in the summer. Oh, well, maybe this fall will be better! We will see what is in store in a few weeks. I plan on being at Mermet from the 24th-26th.
Thanks for the reply. Let me know if you want to get together at Stockton sometime.

Dark Wolf

 

[nagel]

Thanks for the update Dark Wolf - I enjoyed the dive at Stockton a couple weeks ago with SteveC. It was our first time at Stockton and definately worth the trip. Hey, I'll be at Mermet the 25th & 26th also. What kind of vehicle will you be driving? I'd like to swing by and introduce myself.

S. Nagel

 

[Dark Wolf]

I will be driving a dark blue Dodge Neon 4-door. By all means, stop by! Look foreward to meeting you.