Crazy Question

[Martimus Rex]

Ok, new to treasure hunting and a novice scuba diver. Looking for people thoughts on diving the mississippi river at St Louis. Or the Missouri river for that matter. Thinking it is a very bad idea.

 

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[sphillips]

Dont know good or bad about diving the river, but there are many steamboats that sank between St. louis and KC. Do some research.

 

[allen_idaho]

It's not a bad idea. I do a bit of river diving from time to time. Just be prepared for swift currents and very poor visibility.

 

[FISHEYE]

Zero vis,fast currents,lots of debris to get stuck in underwater.Nasty polluted muddy water is not my idea of haveing to risk my life diving looking for anything of value.I used to live near St louis years ago.I never went in the river nor did i know anyone else that did.Most of the time it was at flood stage.

 

[Mackaydon]

Not a good idea; wait till you are an experienced diver and that includes being comfortable doing night dives which may then compare to the vis in the Mighty Miss. and Mo.

 

[Martimus Rex]

Thanks guys, pretty much what I thought. Plus with currents and floods where would you start looking, New Orleans?

 

[itmaiden]

You are receiving good advice on this board. There is indeed traffic and hazardous current condition and terrible visibility...like "none" most of the time.

There was a Ferry with valuables on board that sank in the "Old" Missouri River, which was later on diverted and the old river became a field. It was already located by other TH's though, and when they started digging down to it, even though dry field on top, was still a gushing section of River below and they almost drowned when they broke through. They got the problem taken care of, and made a good haul, much donated for a museum. Many Ferries were transport or tourist oriented, and then there were the "work Ferries", as well as those used during the Civil War.

Rivers change course over time so you would want to first research some maps from the time period you are seeking. If you have not researched possible wrecks, then you are diving "hoping to get lucky", and in a large river and a popular river like the ones you mention, you indeed will find a lot of junk.

First I recommend that if you do "risk your life", wait till dry season when the water levels are way down...(during farming season mid-Spring, till mid-summer). You will have less current problem then as well.
Spend some time on the bank first, just watching the currents.
The surface currents alone can alert you to many hazards. Debris such as Tree Trunks alter current. You cannot predict the undertow. Best to talk to local fishermen or others who navigate those waters frequently.
If it is not safe to swim, it is not safe to dive period.

If you are looking for dive experience, I recommend the lakes. If you are looking for Treasure then:

1)Research First (Library Historical Sections, Old Newspapers) and ask for information/stories of what you are seeking from the "old timers'
2) Always use the buddy system
3) Have appropriate defense plans in place in case you encounter hungry gators, or other dangerous wildlife.
4)Then canvas the banks and nearby fields (with owner permission) with a deep seeker metal detector. (A Ferry may have run aground or been carried out of stream by a flood)

Be sure to utilize aerial maps to look for river changes such as oxbow lakes.
Oxbow lakes may be a good place to search. (Lot of dangerous snakes though, and sometimes quicksand or "quickmud" as I would call it)

I grew up half of my life 4 hours South of St Louis, and in a county with 5 Rivers.
There were some Mississippi changes during the New Madrid Earthquake of 1812. Our local library has 2 books with first hand accounts of what transpired and it is good to know if you are looking for anything prior to that date.

Be aware of your time underwater. That would be the worse mistake of a newbie diver/underwater treasure hunter. It is easy to become so engrossed in what you are doing or finding that you forget your time.

itmaiden

 

[itmaiden]

Oh, I should have mentioned "Flash Floods". Even if the weather is "pristine" in your area, if there are rains anywhere up any tributaries to the river then you can end up with unexpected Flash Flooding.

Also be aware of Dam sites. Like for instance, one area of interest to me is dammed 3 miles up the river. Dams often have water release periods which raise the water level. You need to be aware of any dams on any adjacent rivers or tributaries that contribute to the area you are diving.

For instance, my personal preferred site when the water releases becomes dangerous in a matter of 10 minutes. 10 minutes is not a lot of time to get your rear out of the water. The closer to the dam the faster the rise and force of the water. The water doesn't go back down (my site) till about 10a.m. the next morning...(if there are no more releases). Schedules for releasing water out of the dam change sometimes on a moments notice so will not always be available to the public beforehand. Just make sure to eye the banks and be aware of rocks, stumps etc that you can use as guide markers for changing water levels.
If you see the water starting to rise, get out immediately.

itmaiden

 

[Martimus Rex]

Hey itmaiden, great advice and info. I know what you mean about the flash floods. We do a lot of caving and that is something we always have to watch out for. Might not rain very much where we are at but a couple inches a 10 miles away can mean the end.

 

[wwwtimmcp]

you know there are probably 100 canoes/rafts/and bateau for every steamboat wreck. some of these were close to shore, hit rocks/snags/deadheads and the like. you might not need to get your head wet at all. most detectorists stop at the waters edge, a big mistake in my book.

may of the old fur trade era trappers came back to civilization via canoe with the spoils from years of trapping traded at rendevous in mountain areas like green river wyoming. then you have tons of gamblers/military expedtions/indian traders/and even the indians themselves.

be smart about what you do,be very carefull but hey I'd sure give it a good try. best of luck to you.

 

[sphillips]

Here is the link itmaiden is referring to: http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,280833.0.html

Heed the advice in these posts, the mighty rivers can be most unpredicatable, with snags you wont see until it is too late.

Good luck, but beware of the proverbial learning curve!

 

[ScubaFinder]

Your "Crazy Question" turned out to be a great thread, heed the advice given on the diving. On another note though, why not look into a cheaper sonar unit and small, shallow draft vessel? I'm doing this right now, searching the lower Trinity river south of Dallas. Steamboats ran all the way from Galveston to Fort Worth before the sand banks caved in and the river became un-passable. During the transition and build up of snags and sand bars, no less than 5 wrecked between Ft. Worth and the next landing south (about 50 miles). I use a bass boat (but an aluminum john boat with a trolling motor would probably be better) and a Humminbird Side Scan Sonar unit (under $1,000 on ebay). I once had the sonar mounted on a SeaDoo and I could go anywhere. That would allow you to search the deeper parts of the river without ever getting your toes wet. Also check your local laws...in Texas I can search all I want, but if I touch anything its a felony. If I do find a Steamboat, I'll spend some time making pretty sonar shots of it, dive and have a look around, then call Texas A&M Nautical Archaeology, then call local media and make sure my name gets printed somewhere in same article as George Bass.

Jason

 

[Martimus Rex]

Yeah this turned out to be a lot of great info and things to think about. Glad to hear about the sonar on the seedoo. I just bought a small portable unit to use on my yamaha jet ski.

 

[ScubaFinder]

Nuthin' to it, I'd probably skip the towfish and go hull mounted in a river though. Good luck, I had a blast with mine and still am.