The Great Lakes are five huge lakes located around the border between Canada and the United States. Great Lake diving is popular, since the cold water have preserved many interesting old wrecks. You can also encounter a fascinating freshwater flora and fauna here. The Great Lakes are sometimes referred to as inland seas due to their great size, and Great Lake diving will usually offer an excellent visibility compared to the one found in smaller, warmer and more nutrient rich American lakes.
Great Lake diving in Lake Superior
Lake Superior is the largest and deepest of the five Great Lakes. It has an average depth of 483 feet (147 meters), but the deepest parts of the lake go all the way down to 1,332 feet (406 meters). The water is cold and a thick, full wetsuit is recommended. The cool water does however have several advantages – the underwater visibility is usually great compared to other lakes and the many ship wrecks that you can visit during your Great Lake diving are in remarkably good condition. Lake Superior is not only the coldest, but also the clearest of the five Great Lakes. The chilly temperature combined with low amounts of nutrients, organic materials and suspended sediments provide scuba divers with an average underwater visibility of 27 feet (8 meters). Every year, new wrecks are discovered in Lake Superior since the currents are strong enough to cover and uncover entire ships. The seven most well frequented dive sites in the popular Alger Preserve in Lake Superior are The Bermuda, The Herman H. Hettler, The Kiowa, The Manhatten, The Smith Moore and The Steven M. Selvick.
Great Lake diving in Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan has a fascinating flora and fauna protected by Michigan's nine underwater preserves. These preserves were established in 1980 and comprise almost 1,900 square miles (4921 square kilometres) of Great Lake bottomland. Great Lake diving among the well preserved shipwrecks in Lake Michigan is a great experience, but keep in mind that it is illegal to collect artefacts and disturb the wrecks here. You can end up having your boat or car confiscated and forced to pay a large fine. The maximal punishment for serious felonies is 2 years in prison. The stiff laws and the cold water have worked to together in order to keep the wrecks in great condition. During the warm season, the surface temperature can exceed 65 degrees F (18 degrees C) in Lake Michigan, but if you plan to go further down than 40 feet (12 meters) during your Great Lake diving you should use a full wetsuit since the temperature will be significantly lower deep down in the lake.
One example of a popular dive site that you can visit during your Great Lake diving in Lake Michigan is the wreck of Mesquite. Mesquite was a U.S. Coast Guard cutter that ran aground off the Keweenaw Peninsula in 1989. The accident happened during the fall, and before the ship could be rescued the winter storms had pounded it so violently against the rocks that it was no longer repairable. Mesquite was instead deliberately sunk close to the peninsula and the ship is today resting in around 120 feet (37 meters) of water. If you are a trained wreck diver, it is considered safe to venture inside Mesquite.
Great Lake diving in Lake Huron
Lake Huron is the second-largest of the Great Lakes and bounded on the east side by Ontario and on the west by Michigan. One example of popular dive sites that you can check out during your Great Lake diving excursion are William H. Barnum. William H. Barnum is an old ship that was built in Detroit, Michigan in 1873 and lost in Lake Huron in 1894. It is still partially intact and can be found 5.5 miles (8.9 kilometers) southeast of Mackinac Bridge. The currents are typically mild in this part of the lake. If many divers are present, the silt can be disturbed and decrease the otherwise good underwater visibility. The dept range for this Great Lake diving is 50 – 75 feet (15-23 meters). William H. Barnum was transporting corn across Lake Huron in April when the ship was blocked and cut by ice. Captain and crew were rescued and no one drowned. This 218 feet (66 meter) wooden steamer is still upright, but the stern has collapsed. The 35 feet (11 meter) bow still has parts of the two decks and it is possible to penetrate the wreck. (This should naturally only be carried out by trained wreck divers, preferably with previous cold water experience.) A propeller and one big boiler are also intact. The rudder has been removed from William H. Barnum and is instead exhibited in St. Ingnace.
Great Lake diving in Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the shallowest of the five Great Lakes, and it is also the smallest in volume. During Great Lake diving in Lake Erie, you shouldn’t miss the area around Long Point since this small area has an amazingly large collection of shipwrecks. The bottom is literary crammed with an abundance of wrecks from various epochs. Over 200 wrecks can be explored if you locate your Great Lake diving trip to Long Point. Until the end of the 19th century, Lake Erie was a very busy water way and especially the route between Detroit and Buffalo was heavily trafficked. Ships caught in sudden storms would often try to head toward Long Point for shelter, but many of them sank before they reached land. This is why you can find such an abundance of shipwrecks when you go Great Lake diving around Long Point in Lake Erie. The most shallow dive sites are located in no more than 15 feet (4.6 meters) of water. For deep divers, there are wrecks to explore all the way down to 195 meters (60 meters). The very deepest dive sites in Lake Erie are however out of reach for most recreational divers due to the increased risk of injury at such great depts. The underwater visibility in Lake Erie has increased significantly during the last few years, and this has attracted many divers that used to choose one of the larger lakes for their Great Lake diving trips.
Great Lake diving in Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario has the smallest surface are of the five Great Lakes and is located furthest to the east. A majority of the Great Lake diving in Lake Ontario takes place along the North shore, especially near Kingston and Belleville. You can also continue eastward from Kingston and explore the St. Lawrence River and its many shipwrecks. Lake Ontario is where you can find the only sunken warships from the war of 1812 - The Scourge and The Hamilton. Another dive site of interest for history buffs is the wreck of the iron hulled side-wheeler named Cornwall. Cornwall was deliberately sunk around 1930, but it wasn’t until 1989 that she was rediscovered. Cornwall is one of the early Canadian steamboats; she was built in Montreal in 1854 under the name Kingston. This ship was actually the fourth commercial iron vessel to traffic the Great Lakes. The ship was so elaborately built and richly decorated that the Prince of Wales (who was later to become Edward VII) used her as his home when he visited Canada in 1860. Cornwall is now resting upright in approximately 70 feet (21 meters) of water. The comparatively shallow depth means that quite a lot of sunlight reaches down to the wreck and you can expect un underwater visibility around 15-20 feet (4.6-6 meters) if you go Great Lake diving in this area during the warm season.
