Ice diving

[Shooter]

Looking for divers. I have equip to get started, Heated tents, augers saws ect. Want to plan some dives to mille lacs and other lakes in cambridge area.

[AandA]

Lets go ;D  More info would be nice. : :.. What time, what day, where. 

Hey what about diving then Samuel Ely up in two harbors????

I''m available any weekend exept this weekend......... :Ok so I'm available this weekend too.

I have the NEED ta get wet!!! ;D >

[Shooter]

I have several more dives through smith prior to certification. We need a minimum of three divers, (all ice cerified) It is alot of work so the more the merrier.
Here is a link of the dive(pics) this weekend at spec. lake. Enjoy

We will be diving again in the next couple of weeks check with Smith for info

[AandA]

Where is Spec Lake? ???  Whats to see there ????  How was the visibility ????  I was not able to find ANY mention of your ice dive on the Smith dive site nor any mention of a future ice event separate from their ice class :.  I'm Ice certified, have my own equipment and need to get more ice dives this year.  So far my only ice dive this year is in the river behind my house (poor viz and not much to see...).

I REALLY WANT TO HOOK UP with other divers to go ice diving ;D ;D ;D!!!

Please let me know dates and times and I'll be there! >!

[Shooter]

Excellent 8) were almost there.  The only thing we need them is one more person to be the safety diver. They haven't determined the lake yet, but I believe the next scheduled dive is on the 28th from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Spectacle Lake is approximately 7 to 8 miles west of Cambridge, visibility was between three and 9 feet, depending on when you got in the hole, there was some good bottom structure, and some small pan fish.

Special thanks to instructor Bill King, from Smith diving, who spearheaded the event

[AandA]

OK....

I hate ta say this but Alyson (the first A in AandA) now actively dislikes Shooter.   So Do I actually but for me it's me more of a jealousy thing .

First the bad news and the first part of the answer of why Alyson doesn’t like Shooter anymore.  He called the other night and had the AUDACITY to tell me that he would NOT be ice diving this weekend as planned.   Horrible I said.  Then he had the further hubris to tell me that he was actually going down to Florida ta dive fer the weekend....  How could this be I asked myself???? A real ice diver looks forward to the Minnesota winter as an opportunity to further his experience with ice diving.    But the real TRUTH of the matter quickly asserted itself.  A real Minnesotan ice diver or not JUMPS at the opportunity for a warm water dive in the depths of a Minnesota winter.   OK, so I've gotten over it and am willing to forgive and forget, but Alyson OH NO!  She had plans this weekend, plans of relaxing, not going anywhere, just a kick yer feet up and relax kind of a Saturday.  Nope not gonna happen anymore.  She embodies the problem of being both a diver and the wife of a diving addict.     YUP.  Ya may have guessed it... She's now line tender..... : : : : : : : : : :
We're heading up to the Crosby/Ironton pits on Saturday morning.  We've gotten an ice report from MN School of diving in Brainerd and the ice cover on the pits is fine and ready ta dive.   We have not yet selected the specific pit (some of that will depend on the road and weather conditions).  We're probably looking at Mangan, Louise, Manohman, or Portsmouth.)
If anyone out there is interested in joining us up there please respond to this thread and we'll make the requisite arrangements.

[AandA]

Thanks to Shooter, I received a call from Bill King who was heading out to Lake Minnetonka on Saturday.  He very kindly invited me to come along.   From just my brief phone conversation, Bill sounds like a really nice guy hooked on diving, who knows local diving and is a safety conscious instructor.  I asked him to please keep me in mind for future dives.  Since Alyson had already agreed to come up to Crosby with me I declined his invitation.  Alyson VERY much wanted me to go to Minnetonka, but no.  I had my heart set on diving the pits.  We went up EARLY on Saturday morning.  The road back to Louise was actually better than in the summer.  Ice thickness was about 6-8 inches.  Thanks to cooler temps, upper twenties, there was no slush on the ice.  We located the hole close to shore for safety and convenience.  I had two simply WONDERFUL ;D ;D dives of about a half an hour each.  Visibility ranged between forty to fifty feet.  The ice had NO snow cover and with a fairly bright sky pierced occasionally by the sun.  This meant that under the ice it was quite bright.
I've attached a couple of photos.  The first is of the line going off into the distance.  Notice the white tic marks every 10 feet.  This really gives you perspective on the viz.  The other photo is of the hole from below. 

The BAD NEWS was that my camera housing leaked again >!  It has leaked a bit before.  I had previously inspected the O-ring but could find no damage.  I bought a new O-ring and installed it prior to this trip.  Oh well....At this point I'll probably call the manufacturer and try to get it sent in for service.     

[Shooter]

Alyson,
Sorry for interrupting your weekend plans.  :'( Sometimes my overenthusiasm for the sport of diving, along with my spontaneous nature has a tendency to rub the spouses of my diving buddies in the wrong way.  I can be like a mild rash, after you get used to it you don't even notice it's there  :o;D ;D ;D
Aaron,
I'm glad you got a chance to go diving, the mine pits is always an excellent choice, wish I could've been there.  I won't back out on the next one.  Unless of course the Gulf of Mexico seas are less than 4 feet, and I can get a good deal on airfare the forecast changed on my last trip about the time I got on the plane here in Minnesota.  So my trip to the middle grounds was canceled.  I had to settle instead of diving in the bay for stone crabs spearing some fish and doing some fossil diving.  I will try to post a report later on after I get caught up on some of my paperwork here at work.
Thanks for posting the pics and the report.

[AandA]

Shooter,
Thanks for the apology.  If you can find time to go on an ice dive with Art (not Aaron  : ) and I don't have to come along and "tend rope" then I will totally forgive you!  ;D  At least it was a fairly warm day and we were able to bring our dog who had LOADS of fun (until he was stuck in the van while Art was under the ice).  So, figure out when you're free and give Art a call soon!  He's starting to go through withdrawl again.  :o

Alyson

[Shooter]

What type of dog do you have?  Here's a picture of one of my dogs after a tough day of diving at the mine pits.[img][/img]
Maybe this weekend.
Sorry about the name mixup.  It must've been with the a and a.  Maybe after I have a face to put with a name that will help