Want to dive Great Lakes -- where to start?

[Marie13]

DRIS Sun Dog is already in the water in Hammond. First charter is Saturday. I'd be on that boat if I didn't have some leg issues left over from a bout of shingles and need to do a bit of PT before I boat dive beginning in mid-May.

I did the Mary Alice B and the Regina on Lake Huron last year. I was in heaven! Pics below are of the Mary Alice B.

I'm hitting Alpena/Thunder Bay in early August. We tried last year, but trip was blown out before we even left.

Mooring map for the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Click on a pic at the bottom and you get info on the wrecks, video, etc. Story Map Tour

3D of Thunder Bay wrecks
Thunder Bay 3D Wrecks Project | NOAA & Fourth Element

Toby is insanely expensive in "high season" - week before Labor Day - $200 a night for hotel room! Friends are going this year and I really wanted to join them, but that was just too pricey for me right now. Will need to save up. About a 10 hour drive one-way from me in the Chicago area.

 

[Marie13]

Double Action just moved a boat over to Huron, too.

The new DRIS/Double Action boat holds 16 divers. After only being on 6 packs, I'm looking forward like you wouldn't believe to the Go Between. Space! I've got 3 charters booked for Memorial Day weekend and 1-2 the weekend before 4th of July. Hope to hit the stern end of the Regina this time!

 

[Lorenzoid]

Sorry if I should have found this already, but where do I start reading if I want to begin the process of planning a wreck diving trip to the Great Lakes? I have about 80 dives, many in quarries, and a wreck, nitrox, and drysuit card, but honestly, very little wreck experience. I want to ease into it. Not eager to penetrate wrecks or do anything risky, just want to try something different from the same-old Caribbean sites.

Thanks in advance.

We dipped our toes into Great Lakes diving with Tobermory last summer, mostly because it was a straight shot north on I-75 from Atlanta to Detroit (and then just keep going up the Bruce peninsula). We, too, had had our fill not only of the "same-old Caribbean sites" but also of North Carolina wrecks. You mention wanting to "ease into it." Have you considered doing some NC wreck diving--a lot closer to home--before committing to a Great Lakes trip? It's a good way to get a feel for wreck diving closer to home.

 

[Marie13]

Oh, and something I forgot to mention about Great Lakes wrecks...

They may be covered with zebra mussels, but they actually look like wrecks! Cold, fresh water is a wonderful preservative!

 

[rhwestfall]

St. Lawrence, Lake Ontario (Picton), Lake Erie, and Lake Huron......

What a great region to call home......

 

[Marie13]

St. Lawrence, Lake Ontario (Picton), Lake Erie, and Lake Huron......

What a great region to call home......

Yes! I've never lived elsewhere. I'm a Mitten State native (below the bridge troll!), and even lived in Alpena for a year and half in the early 90s as a reporter on the local paper.

 

[CJFor]

Looking to get in some Great Lakes wrecks this summer as well, some great recommendations on this thread so far! Does anyone dive the Great Lakes wet, or would I be absolutely out of my mind? I have an 8mm semi-dry, haven't ventured into the drysuits yet.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I saw an article in the Winter 2018 issue of Alert Diver (the DAN magazine) about Isle Royale (Lake Superior) and thought of this thread.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Looking to get in some Great Lakes wrecks this summer as well, some great recommendations on this thread so far! Does anyone dive the Great Lakes wet, or would I be absolutely out of my mind? I have an 8mm semi-dry, haven't ventured into the drysuits yet.

I've seen folks dive it wet. An 8mm semidry is a pretty darn warm suit! If you don't go super deep, don't do anything technical, and go mid to late season so that the top layer is "warm", it's manageable wet. My first GL wreck dives were done in a 7mm. It's doable. Wet or dry, once you cross through that top thermocline, you feel like you're in heaven!!

 

[Divin'Papaw]

One more thing about the cold. Not all locations are identical. Lake Huron is ALWAYS cold! The Straits warm up as the season wears on, even at depth a bit, due to the mixing of the water as it funnels through the straights. Sheltered, shallower sites warm up pretty well. Even Lake Superior. I did a few wreck dives in Lake Superior a few years back. But this was early Sep off of Munising in the sheltered bay there. The water temps were 56 and 61. Downright balmy for Lake Superior!

The St Lawrence is pretty much 70 degrees top to bottom come August. Awesome time to dive there! Weather topside is beautiful and the water is warm!