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From "Uptown" Jim Brown. . .
Local diving took on new meaning last week as Donna and I vacationed with my parents in the Finger Lakes region of New York State. We stayed at Keuka Lake but ventured beneath the surface at neighboring Seneca Lake, just 15 miles to the east. Keuka was the site of my first solo dive in July 2001 when I explored a barge between 25-65', max depth 77'. My second solo dive in Keuka was in July this year around The Bluff area, with a small boat anchor the only booty recovered. This time I wanted to explore the barges and bottom of Seneca Lake in hopes of scoping out a long-weekend dive trip for the gang next year.
Donna and I joined Rob Parker, owner of S&R Underwater, Beaver Dams, NY on his trusty steed, the Tin Turtle, for our UW foray into the unknown. Parking was conveniently adjacent to the marina and gear lugging was limited to short distances on level surfaces. Rob's 28' pontoon boat will accommodate eight divers, has an easy to use non-fin ladder, removable side curtains for inclement weather and even has a safety bar at 20' with rings for hang bottles. Our 10 minute run out of the marina brought us to the "barge park" and moorings where we geared up in the 75F sunny morning. Donna was our official bubble watcher during a 55 minute tour of four barges to 87' max on air. Zebra mussels were everywhere, even layered on the dirt bottom of the lake. Our second dive included newly certified OW diver Lisa Oldroyd diving wet. We anchored for this dive and after setting the hook we passed by the water intake for the entire town of Watkins Glen, NY. A couple of other barges and a skiff rounded out the tour to 65' max depth on air. Rob left me and escorted Lisa back to the Turtle. I poked around the skiff taking pics and shooting some movie clips. Vis on both dives was no more than 30' but the clarity was pretty good considering all the rain, runoff and current in the deepest of all the Finger Lakes at 600, to 800' in places. Numerous rock bass accompanied us on most of the attractions as evidenced in the pics.
I think this area could make a wonderful long weekend trip, 4.5 hours drive time from York, for couples and/or families. The diving is different and would include exploration of unknown shorelines and depths. Besides, who wouldn't want the Tin Turtle added to their boat diving adventures! Watkins Glen, at the southern point of Seneca Lake, offers a quaint little town of shops and attractions with the most prominent being the Watkins Glen State Park: a sculpted, 1.5 mile chasm through which Glen Creek creates 19 waterfalls, Cavern Cascade, Spiral Tunnel, Glen Cathedral, Rainbow Falls and more. And for the wine lovers among us, the Finger Lakes boasts unlimited wineries, tastings and tours! Let me know if a land/UW trip to this area in 2004 interests you!
Descending again,
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