Today was my first wreck dive of February 2017.    With no ice and no one local available  to dive, Kevin Ailes was happy to came down to check out this shallow water wreck site. One of the reasons for diving this part of the river at this time of year is the absence of boat traffic that would impede  diving.

The last time I dove this site was over 30 years ago and had been interested in seeing the changes over that period of time. Back in the day the water entry points were all natural with shallow slopes and the two ships were on top of each other. The bottom ship was a wooden steam ship and the top one was an old fishing tug that had the superstructure cut away. Thirty years ago the feature point of the wreckage was the tugs’ diesel engine with all its associated components.  My how time changes everything!

The shore line has been dug out and filled in  concrete blocks making it very steep. It appears that a clam shell bucket was used to clean out or deepen the shoreline cutout during this time and a most  of  the wreckage removed.

What was left consists of  junk iron and wood with lots of snag and puncture hazards. There was also a significant current as you moved away from the shoreline into the main body of the river that we were not prepared to investigate this dive.

Air temperature was 27°F, wind speed was 11 mph and wind chill factor temp was ~11° F. Water about 34/35°F. It did not take long for your gear to freeze up on the surface. Still it was a good dive.  🙂

It was a nice day to be checking ice build-up on several of the lakes that are part of the Sister Lakes Chain in Dowagiac, MI.  This one, Round Lake,  has good access and a bathroom suitable for changing in if the weather is bad.