Does Anyone here dive on Lake Erie Shipwrecks?

[Wally Taylor]

Just wondering. I live a little over a mile from Lake Erie as the crow flies. I can see the lake from my farm. I love watching the lake freighters cruising in the distance.
The reason I asked is because there are so many shipwrecks, and Lake Erie is relatively shallow. I looked into taking dive training when I lived in the Florida Keys. I have a lot of hardware in my back. I wondered if I could learn to dive with one of the Oxygen filtration packs, because I think tanks would make it really difficult climbing back onto the boat.
Anyhow, if anyone here dives on Lake Erie shipwrecks, could You point me to any threads relative to Lake Erie diving. I have a lot of time on my hands, and I think that I would like to look into wreck diving on the lake. I live 50 miles Southwest of Buffalo, and 40 miles from Erie, Pa.

 

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[ropesfish]

Hey Wally,
I don't know much about Great Lakes diving, but I know a little about managing a bad back getting on and off a boat.
I don't know what an "oxygen filtration pack" is, but any hookah setup like a Brownie's Third Lung, a Keene surface supplied air compressor or even a SNUBA rig with a 60-90 foot hose and reg is as lightweight as you can go. These are all available either at a dive shop or by ordering directly from the company. Costs can range from 3 or 4 hundred dollars to $4000. These rigs are good for waters up to 60-75 feet deep in waters without a lot of obstructions to snag your hose. GET CERTIFIED by a licensed instructor no matter what you do. The underwater environment is unforgiving and I am sure there are people who would be happier if you came back from your adventures in one piece.
Otherwise, putting your normal dive gear on in the water and hauling it back in over the rail by hand or with a davit/crane or winch is how we older guys handle it aboard the Carib. Make sure you have a good, stout, wide dive ladder and take some time to work out your systems.
Good luck and dive safely.

Try this set of search results: http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/search.php?searchid=13845312

 

[SADS 669]

Wally, if you put the tank on in the water and take it off in the water you will not even know you were wearing it,

otherwise hookah rigs ( recreational surface supplied air) are not so good deeper than 100!ft which you might need to go deeper than looking for wrecks in that area.

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Happily, Lake Erie is relatively shallow. That's one reason there are so many wrecks. Along with sudden storms and not much sea room north to south. Great Lakes wrecks tend to be in shallow water (some are very deep, of course) because the vessels came to grief on rocks and shoals. And Long Point.

All shipwrecks are off limits for recoveries these days - but they are certainly fun to look at.

As others have pointed out, professional education is a must and wreck diving is far more dangerous than many other underwater activities. There are many dive clubs scattered along the shore.

It certainly is an addictive hobby!

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

 

[Wally Taylor]

Thanks guys. I have a friend who's a Merchant Marine and a diver. He worked one Summer on a research vessel moored about three miles from my house. I set up my telescope, and I could see the men moving about the deck. He and I had a pair of long range two ways, and we could get a pretty good signal most days. I worked on a ship out of Key West, and I got the fever again that Summer. It seems a shame to be this close to such an interesting body of water and not taking advantage of it.
My wife hates boats, and can't swim, so I've never had a boat since the 70's, but I do go charter fishing when I just have to get out there. I can swim lik a fish, but when I was 8, my Cub Scout leader drowned in the Illinois River. It has some crazy currents, and especially undertows. His 7 year old son fell overboard when they set off. When his Dad wasn't looking, Kevin shed his life preserver just before they took off. My Scout leader jumped in and got to Kevin. The last thing anyone saw of him was his arm pushing Kevin up so they could grab him. Kevin made it, but his Dad drowned saving him, so I LOVE the water, but have always had a deathly fear of drowning. They did recover Dick's body, but a few hundred Scouts in uniform at the funeral is a sight that will never leave my memory. Before I ever try diving I will absolutely get LOTS of training before I do. Thanks for the responses gentlemen. Much appreciated!

 

[Rüdiger]

Hi Wally

Wreck diving is one of the most dangerous variants of diving.
Therefore, first learn to dive very well and gain experience. Only when you do not have to think about the actual diving and you have to control your equipment like in your sleep you are ready for wreck diving.

Mvh
Rüdiger

Ps.Look at this forum : Shipwreck World - Shipwrecks and Underwater Discoveries

 

[CaptEsteban]

Wally, if you put the tank on in the water and take it off in the water you will not even know you were wearing it,

otherwise hookah rigs ( recreational surface supplied air) are not so good deeper than 100!ft which you might need to go deeper than looking for wrecks in that area.

I agree . Boat captains used to toss mine in the water & I donned the gear there , when my back was hurting. Took it back off beside the boat & had them to lift it out . They always grunted because my weights were in pouches in the pockets of my Zeagle BC .

 

[ropesfish]

Wally, another option is to buy an ROV and avoid the cold water and diving altogether. Putting together a set of gear for cold water wreck diving could easily cost $3-5000.
Here's the best choice of affordable ROV's that I know of at present.
https://www.bluerobotics.com/store/rov/bluerov2/

 

[agflit]

Wally-

Great that you want to LEARN to dive...a good place to start.

I live in Wisconsin and work quite often on Lake Michigan...alot of salvage search and recovery. I also am an avid wreck diver. I can assure you that imo, the Great lakes hold some of the finest wreck diving in the world...bar none. The combination of cold water ( 36-42 degrees below the thermocline most years), and low oxygen content at deeper depths deter heavy oxidation and corrosion. Some of those ships have been under water for over 100 years and look as tho they could sail away if they were surfaced!! It's REALLY amazing the condition in some cases...

I would strongly suggest you take some time and map out a plan if you wish to be a wreck diver. It's NOT something you just "jump" into... it takes alot of time money training and skill to do it in a safe and enjoyable manner. The water is cold, it's often deep, and if your a penetration diver...can be VERY dangerous very easily.

It took me 3 years of work up training before I did my first Lake Michigan wreck dive. And that was an "easy" one. It takes a real commitment in time money training and gear...to get started. Wrecking is not something for the faint of heart or undisiplined imo... the most important asset is whats between your ears...methodical, thorough, and attention to detail. Each time and every time.

I think its great that your interested in this...but start with learning to dive first. I mean REALLY learn to dive. Find a good shop, and an instructor you gel with, and develope a mentorship...work hard, work smart, plan your dives and dive your plans...and hopefully I'll see ya on a boat a few years down the road!!

Best of luck, and dive safe!!

ag

 

[seekerGH]

So you are aware, all of the wrecks in the Great Lakes are off limits to any sort of recovery.

 

[Old Bookaroo]

seekerGH:

Jinx!

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

 

[Wally Taylor]

Thanks Everybody. I've been watching John Chatterton's videos, so I can see just how dangerous wreck diving can get. He risked his life blatently just to identify a German submarine. In order to get though a small pinched area where some of the equipment had fallen inside the sub, he had to take off his tanks and push them through the opening. Then he had to put them back on when he regained enough space to strap them on.
This dangerous move was just so that he could photograph the serial number on some piece of equipment in order to tie it to the submarine. Long story short, he found out that a German sub that was historically documented to have sunken off of the coast of North Africa actually sank off of the coast of The U.S. .
Chatterton has parts of his anatomy made of Tungsten Steel! I knew that the show "The Curse of Oak Island" was for real when he made the dive into borehole 10X, which had a 27" shaft the go through that had a large drill bit jammed into the tube. No one weuld have chanced that unless this was a true exploration. He DID get stuck going down the shaft, so I am aware just how dangerous wreck diving can be.

 

[SADS 669]

That's not the hard part, doing what he did........the hard part is him beating back the demons in his mind narked out of his head in pretty much nil visibility while at 230 ft down

 

[Old Bookaroo]

You picked an extreme case as an example with The Shadow Divers. There's a great deal of happy middle ground between diving open wrecks in fifteen or twenty feet of clear water and what Chatterton did!

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

 

[agflit]

That's not the hard part, doing what he did........the hard part is beating back the demons in your mind narked out of your head in pretty much nil visibility while at 230 ft down

^
i
i
i

right there

 

[ropesfish]

Be sure to read Kurson's "The Pirate Hunters" about John Chatterton and John Mattera's hunt for Joseph Bannister's ship Golden Fleece in Samana Bay. A good book and a great story. It's a study in determination in nicer conditions than The Shadow Divers or diving the Andrea Doria etc.
What is the water depth/water temp like up there?
Pirate Hunters Single « Robert Kurson

 

[Wally Taylor]

Just 230 feet would be bad enough, but with the mix screwing with Your mind in zero visability, It would make a guy think that snorkling on a reef where You started wouldn't be such a bad thing to go back to.
Were You talking about diving in 10X? I wondered about getting stuck in that tube on the way down. That would be playing heck on my brain about trying to reverse the squeeze on the way back up with all of the crud stirred up in the water. Just finding Your way back into the shaft and workingmYour way uphill would take a king-sized pair. When You reach his skill level, You probably don't get hired to do too many easy dives. I think if I was Mr Chatterton, I would dive for myself with a good chance for millions in gold at the target depth. That guy is just amazing. My cousin is a retired salvage diver, and he did most of his dives on Puget Sound. I haven't spoken to Gary in years, but he probably has some pretty hairy stories of his own!

 

[Rüdiger]

Hi Wally

In wrecks the huge treasures you dive do not enter, but you dig them out.

Mvh
Rüdiger

Ps. Surely there are surnames, but often very deep.

 

[Ohio Mysteries]

We just released a podcast on the wreck of the Marquette and Bessemer No. 2 in Lake Erie in 1909. Apparently someone brought on board a suitcase with $50,000. I have no idea if paper money would last a century, but thought that of interest since the ship has yet to be found. Anyway, if any of you have an interest, hear our account at Ohio Mysteries (on any podcast forum, or at ohiomysteries.com.) Thanks!
-- Paula

 

[A2coins]

I m ready