Just a Little River Diving

[rgecy]

I decided to take advantage of the great weather yesterday and clear water to do a little river diving with a good friend. The air temp was a balmy 73 degrees and the water was just slightly cooler. Can you say 55 deg. It was a little chilly getting in! But the vis in the river was awesome at 4-5'. The current was pretty swift and we had to hold on to what ever we could just to inch forward.

This was actually a spot that Darren in NC, xXx and I had dove several years ago to check out an image on SI unit we thought could be a possible cannon. Its close to an old fort and ballast stones line the river bank. We did two dives and were lucky enough to pull up two very nice bottles (among the 10-15 other trash bottles we found). Here is the prize of the day!

We also had a visitor with us. I guess my ScubaGecko decided to tag along and enjoy the sun. What a cool picture. He must be the gecko that posed for my avatar!

 

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[bucketofguts]

looks like fun!

 

[mad4wrecks]

I think I might even brave the cold water for a chance at some old bottles like that. Very neat finds Robert. Glad one of us is actually diving.

 

[wwwtimmcp]

55 degrees ? I did my first and last dive of the season in lake erie at 47 degrees.

nice bottles btw.

 

[rgecy]

This is actually the site where Darren and xXx first invented and used the "Redneck Dive Light"!

I don't know if we have any pictures of them or not! But, Darren and Dave(xXx) came down to visit and dive with me here in the rivers. Not knowing what they were in for, neither of them had a dive light, and I guess just assumed there would be light on the bottom. Uh, No! So before we could do any diving, we had to find them a light. The local dive shop was closed and we needed a solution. And then it hit me! I remembered that West Marine had a sale on their Marine Spot Light! 1,000,000 Candlewatts for $9.99! What a deal! So they proceeded to buy two spot lights and some gallon zip lock bags! And if you can imagine it, they had invented what we now call the "Redneck Dive Light"!

Believe it or not, it actually worked. Can you imagine a dive light putting out 1,000,000 candle watts!

Although Dave's light did float out of his hand and somewhere down the river!

 

[Darren in NC]

Oh, the memories...the costs are getting lower now...

 

[Darren in NC]

Didn't work too well on my first dive.

Seriously, nice bottle, bro! Go find those meg teeth!

 

[RELICDUDE07]

Any history info on the bottle?I guess the S.C. is for south carolina.Looks like a great way to spend the day

 

[rgecy]

The bottle pictured is a South Carolina Dispensary bottle. They are highly sought after by collectors, but the one here is one of the more common ones. They actually come in other colors like aqua and amber and there were several different sizes and designs. These usually bring anywhere from $80 to $100+. The amber and colored ones can go much higher.

The South Carolina dispensary was actually a state run monopoly on liquor sales and operated from 1893 to 1907.

http://www.antiquebottles.com/scdispensary/

I haven't looked at the other bottle yet. It was dark green glass and had a slight pontil on the bottom. I am guessing it was late 1800's.

Here is a poor picture of the Dispensary bottle cleaned (taken with camera phone) where you can clearly see the SCD emblem.

Robert

 

[RELICDUDE07]

That a nice looking bottle,and thanks for the info... Im starting to dig some bottles ,and trying to find out all i can about different styles...Thanks ,relic

 

[rubberdiver13]

i just did my deep dive course this weekend 7degrees ....fre fre freezing,....river diving is great

 

[pcolaboy]

Nice bottles Robert! Were you guys 'brailing' for those with your hands down in the mud or were they on the surface of the bottom?

One of these days I may have to do some bottle diving in Pensacola Bay. There are sure to be thousands of them from every era you can think of, but I suspect most will be down in the muck.

Pcola

 

[rgecy]

Scott,

Actually this was great for around here. We had 4-5' on the first dive. Some of the bottles were partially burried, but the SC Dispensary was actually right on top.

It was not braille diving like usual. The temp is going to be back up to around 73-74 again on Sunday and we plan on hitting the same area.

Robert

 

[Leebo in SC]

Hello Robert, I sure would love to come down there and do some river diving with you. I'm up towards Simpsonville. I'll be at the Treasure Expo in Myrtle Beach. Maybe I will see you there.

Lee

 

[rgecy]

Leebo,

My Dad lives in Simpsonville.

You are welcome any time! I am heading out in the boat this weekend to do a little surveying. Probably wont get in the water unless I find a new wreck. Water temp is still in the 40's!

I will definitely be at the Treasure Expo!

Robert

 

[Skimmer]

Hi Robert-
Hey, when youhave a free hour, here's a spot right near you to check out. Head toward P.I. on Ribaut, cross the bridge and continue towards Shell Point. On the right abut a mile and a 1/4 from P.I. gate there is/was a carpet store (glass front, small parking lot.) as you face the building, on the right of it is a sand road (probably overgrown) leading to the water. An old foundation and chimney is about 50 feet from the creek, and on/in the actual creek bank there is a corner of a 2 foot thick Tabby wall.... protruding from the bank just a couple of feet from the high tide mark. REALLY old, like the church walls on Lands End Rd in Frogmore. I always wondered if there was anything there either on land or in the relatively shallow water at that old tabby wall. By water, go under the bridge at P.I. and its about a mile to the bank where the wall is.
I used to explore all over that area on my dirtbike back when I was teaching Recruits to swim at Parris Island, I had lots o free time on my hands and just headed down any dirt path I saw. Check it out, and good luck. You can park and walkback there, its not far to the water. The more modern (but still pretty old) foundation and chimney is straight in from the old tabby wall, so just go straight to the water/bank from it. (For non-Carolina Coast people reading this, Tabby construction is a conglomerate of oyster shells used by early settlers to this area like concrete...usually a f oot to three feet thick. Like, from the 1600's to the 1700's) And, the "Creeks" there are larger than most rivers you are familiar with, bordered with sawgrass swamps and oyster beds. All leading to the Bay and the Atlantic. Beautiful area. I miss it.
Mike

 

[rgecy]

Mike,

Thats now an upscale neighborhood called Wrights Point Plantation. I imagine there could be some good finds on land, but pretty much off limits now. As for the water, I have dove there many times and found a few good bottles, but mostly Megalodon Teeth in the deeper water.

It is defintely one of my favorite spots!

Robert