Sturgeon Island

31 05 2015

Sunday, May 31st, 2015 ~

w00t! There shall be diving, today!

We had an Oren sneak into our house, late Saturday night, so we figured that we would take him for a scooter run, in the River. There have been occasional Oren sightings, over the last year, and this time, we took him for a nice swim. 😛

Our plan was to go to a little underwater island, that we had found last year. It is entirely possible that it may have been found  before, but it was pretty new to us. Last year, Steve had seen a giant sturgeon there, on more than one occasion.

As we dropped into the channel, we came upon remnants of a wreck, that we had also found recently. The current was absolutely ripping here, so it was hard to get any good shots. I did get a few, but they were a little blurry… thanks to the blustery current!

dsc_1885Another current blurry shot…

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Other bits, laying near the wreckage…

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We stayed at the wreck for a few minutes, then back towards the middle of the channel. As we got to about 94′, we saw a baby sturgeon. This was so nice to see! I had never seen a little one, and that means that there is something good going on, in the water. He was just over 1′ long, and didn’t seem too afraid of us. I did have my camera, but it was clipped off, behind my leg, and I just wasn’t quick enough.

We arrived at the island, and since we have seen sturgeon here, every single time, we decided to call it, “Sturgeon Island.” It may have another name, if it’s been found before, but to us… Sturgeon Island. We drifted along, and enjoyed looking at the different levels of rock, and the different formations, which were really amazing. 🙂

As we made our way back up, we passed through the Gaskin, and then into the shallows, for a little bit of deco.

Steve and Oren, as we swam up to our 20′ spot…

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Oren…

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Me, with a nice green slime, in front of my face!

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All three’s a charm!

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Nice bottle!

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Steve’s new-found snorkel…

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Bottom Time: 1 hour, 25 mins.
Max. Depth: 109′
Water Temp.: 55F
Vis.: 20′ to 50′

Steve and Oren dumped their tanks, while I guarded the gear, in the water, so the choppy waves wouldn’t whisk it away. Then, it was my turn… so… I just had to take a picture…

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We had yet another grand day of Diving Goodness, in the St. Lawrence River!





GUE Day – Centeen Park

24 05 2015

Saturday, May 23rd, 2015 ~

Today, we met up with a whole bunch of GUE friends, and a few GUE-interested friends, for a day of training, skills, and fun!

Steve and I were packed and almost ready to go, the night before, as we had planned on leaving our place at 6:30am. Ok, we were a few minutes late, leaving, but we still got to the park with time to spare.

We set up the big tent, brought out the chairs and coolers, and got our gear ready. It was pretty chilly out (around 4C), and the wind was blustery!

Steve started his Training Day, and I briefed my dive buddies on our dive.

My dive buddies: Nick, Roger, and Matthieu…

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Here is my fabulous drawing, of the Gaskin (yeah, I know – I’m not going to win any awards, here)…

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Andy also came to play, but would dive with Mario, Lisa, and Jen B.!

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Andy…

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Steve, getting started with his Training Day, with Marianne, Denis, and Sylvain!

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Nick, Matthieu, Roger, and I went out to the Gaskin, to do an impromptu Project Baseline dive! I had my camera with me, so figured that it would be a good time to do it!

Nick and Roger, as we made our way to the line…

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Matthieu, to my right. Oops… I caught some of his bubbles!

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We had a nice, relaxing swim out, with hardly any current. As we got to the bow, I took a photo, for PB.

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Poor thing is really falling apart…

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Matthieu, outside the stern, of the wreck…

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Nick, inside the wreck…

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Roger, inside the wreck…

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The stern is pretty badly broken up, too.

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It has deteriorated quite a bit, over the winter. View from the stern…

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Diving Goodness!

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We headed back to the basin, and it occurred to me, that I didn’t see the statues, on the way out. There was the little one, but not the standing ones. Hmmm… Our plan was to check them out, on the way back in.

We surfaced, and Jen, Andy, Lisa, and Mario were doing their gear checks, to do their dive. Apparently, the statues were moved, two days prior! That explains things, and confirms that I’m not completely devoid of my marbles (I know, it’s close, but I do still have a few)!

Bottom Time: 1 hour, 6 minutes
Max. Depth: 70′
Avg. Depth: 40′
Water Temp.: 51F (53F, in shallows)

We regrouped, then went back down, to find the new resting spot, for the statues! Lo and behold, there’s the fella, at the desk!

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…and… of course, a selfie, with my statue buddy…

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It was a short one, but it was another fun dive!

Bottom Time: 14 minutes
Max. Depth:  29′
Avg. Depth: 23′
Water Temp.:  53F

Group shot! I was trying to smile, but my face wasn’t cooperating.

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We got out, had a spot of lunch, and the guys went for fills. There were various teams in and out of the water, for the rest of the day, and we had an absolute blast! If only we had a little bit warmer surface temperature, all would have been perfect!

Lisa! Power Ranger!

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Steve’s dive debriefing…

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Sylvain, putting his gear together…

 

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Mario and Lisa, before their second dive!

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Marianne, after her dives! Smiles are good!

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Marianne, Steve, Denis, and Sylvain…

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Denis even got to try out his scooter!

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A great day!

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A big shout-out to SOS – 1000 Islands Chapter, for all of the work that they have done, at Centeen Park, including putting in these benches! They are fantastic!

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They came in handy!

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You can support these efforts, by getting these fancy Centeen Park Diver Tags! They are not mandatory, but very much appreciated, if you dive at Centeen Park (contact us, or a 1000 Islands Chapter member, for tags). $10, for the year!

Also, a Happy Birthday, to Pierli!

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Despite the “wind chill,” it was still an extra fun day, and we plan on doing it again! Come on out, and join us!