Table Rock GPS locations etc

[Nemrod]

Taking the Whaler for a shakedown at Table Rock two weekends from now. Was wondering if anyone had GPS coordinates for some decent shallow dive spots? I am not equipped for cold water being a tropical sort but I thought there might be some submerged hill tops or other sites or cliff/walls that start shallow. I can probably withstand a few excursions beyond the thermocline briefly in my 3/2. Also what conditions might I expect there, viz, surface temperatures and thermocline depths.

Also, do the sherrif boats and other appointed guardians of democracy follow divers around harrasing them like they do in Arkansas or is this lake diver friendly? Thanks in advance. N

 

[Bill51]

Table Rock has plenty of great little shallow dives, but it depends on where on the lake you’re going to be – it is a huge lake.

If you’re near the dam you can find some good shore diving at the state park, if you’re in a boat near Indian Point there’s an island called “Goose Island” just east of there that has a nice shelf and a little wall at about 40’ on the south side of the island. If you’re further west on the lake you can dive the shelf under the swing at the party cove – assuming the area isn’t full of drunk boaters at the time, but they usually leave around 5 PM so you can pickup all the sunglasses, swim suits, and towels they leave on the bottom. There are also a few sunken boats south east of Kimberling City along the west bluff if you can get a local to point them out on a map for you.

I have the GPS coordinates of many of them in my GPS and next time I bring it home from the airport I’ll try to post some of them. Some of the local dive shops might give you some more if you buy something from them.

ETA: If you’re doing trimix in a drysuit there I’ve got the location of a $250 dollar anchor I lost in 170’ of water a couple years ago.

 

[Nemrod]

"ETA: If you’re doing trimix in a drysuit there I’ve got the location of a $250 dollar anchor I lost in 170’ of water a couple years ago."

No, I don't have a dry suit, warm water ocean diver here, lol. What kind of anchor cost 250 dollars? The one on my Whaler was like 40 dollars! I don't normally dive freshwater lakes, to little viz and cold water and it is dark and nothing to see. Of course, I make the occasional exception! I just want to do a few casual dives. N

 

[cantsee]

have trimix, need location, will ba in kimberling city this weekend

 

[Bill51]

I found an old GPS file on my computer that might offer some fun spots.

There’s an old house foundation and storm cellar in a shallow cove between Baxter Springs and Campbell point at 36.5778852 / 93.529004 it’s also a nice little cove to anchor out and swim at.

While deep and cold, the Enchanted Forest is one of the best dives of the entire lake. Visibility is usually great once you drop below the tops of the big trees and get down toward the bottom at 70’ or so. It’s at 36.6194594 / 93.3189441. The silt that has settled on the tree branches over the years sparkles when you shine your light on them and it looks like underwater snow if you shake a tree.

Goose Island is at 36.6257626 / 93.3350534 and on weekends has a few houseboat liveaboard dive boats tied up there with classes.

A fairly deep wreck just north of Goose Island is the Zeb at 36.6308481 / 93.335665 but it is a very large old ferryboat. There used to be a maker in a tree you could tie off to, descend down the tree, and there is a line extending northeast about 60’ to the bow of the wreck from the bottom of the tree. The deepest point on the stern of the boat is close to 100’.

The wreck just southeast of Kimberling City is an old houseboat with the top fairly close to the surface and there was a speedboat tied nose to the bottom floating with the stern close to the top at 36.5901858 / 93.4097744 This place used to be marked with a green Freon tank floating at the surface.

I lost a 30# anchor off a 36’ Sea Ray cabin cruiser off what is called point 9 where the lake branches north toward Cape Fair. There is a nice little peninsula that extends out from the west shore at about 36.6230965 / 93.4668786 This point that may or may not be underwater, has some nice little walls and shelfs around it but it does drop off to as much as 170’ to the east toward the main north south channel. It appears my anchor slid off the shelf when the boat swung over the line and cut it on the point. This is a great dive spot but you have to be very careful during peak times of people going up to the swing because traffic can be a little crazy around 5 or 6 on Saturday evenings with drunks coming out.

The Swing, which is Table Rock’s version of party cove, is just north of point 9 at 36.6376877 / 93.4898222 and is a fun little wall and shelf dive – when the place isn’t packed with partiers. Look for the kids climbing the bluff and swinging out off the bluff to jump in the water and you’ll find all kinds of stuff right under the swing. Funny story about diving under the swing one night after the partiers had left – my wife saw a beach towel laying on the bottom and went over to pick it up and pulled on it but realized it was wedged back in the rocks. She pulled on it again and it pulled itself back into the rocks again. By the time I got over to see what she was doing she was tugging on the towel that appeared to be fighting back – at which time she realized about a 10# catfish had claimed the towel and was partially wrapped in it and trying to drag it into the rocks. We left the towel for the catfish. We’ve also gotten into huge mud bugs in that area if anyone is a good Cajun cook they can make a feast out of the area.

I hope this helps anyone diving in my old lake. I started diving Table Rock in 1961, but haven’t been back for a couple years now and I hope to get back sometime this summer for old times sake. One of the dive shops out of KC runs multiple house boats as mini liveaboards there every month during the summer and they are a fun trip. They put 10-14 divers on each boat and have had as many as 3 boats out at once for 3 day trips around the lake. A local dive shop on the lake has a workboat that shuttles fresh tanks out to the houseboats.

The lake has a couple sink holes toward the dam that go as deep as 220’ when the lake’s up and we found parts of a helicopter in one that had crashed in the lake years ago. You can also dive parts of the original Kimberling City bridge without going below 100’, but the main portions are down around 150’ and go all the way 180’.

 

[Nemrod]

Thanks for all the info Bill51!

One day a smart young fellow will invent a sonar mask with a water proof LCD screen on the inside and sonar sender/reciever on the front. A small computer built into the frame will provide real time high definition virtual vizibility in virtual color or black and white, I want one, then we can dive day or night in zero vizibility and see dozens if not hundreds of feet! I want one please--now. N

 

[Bill51]

A cross between a bat and a dolphin with a little IR thrown in for good measure then add a display like the new aviation synthetic vision heads up units. Sounds like a winner to me if we can add one of the new solid-state laser ring inertial systems for exact positioning info. Plus I think an organic LED or holographic projection display would be much better.