Wreck Diver Specialty in Duluth, MN
Last fall I decided to get another certification – PADI Wreck Diver. While I already had a Dive Master rating and experience diving around wrecks, I always wanted to take the class to learn penetration guidelines, techniques, safety considerations, etc. Why? The main reason is that I live in Minnesota and Lake Superior is one of the top fresh water wreck dives sites in the world.
The class itself was pretty straight forward – about 3 hours of class time reviewing the text and watching a video. You do take a test and talk about the pending dives. In this case, we also needed to ensure that we have a few pieces of specialized equipment:
- 2 Dive Lights – when doing a penetration, it can get dark. Having two lights is a safety procedure and highly advised.
- A line reel – during the in-water session, we would be practicing tying off and laying down a line that can be used to find the exit. Silt out conditions are not uncommon in dives and once again, safety is paramount.
- Cutting Shears / Knife – Similar to silt outs, it is also not uncommon to become tangled in lines or wires when performing a penetration. Cutting shears or a knife that is easily accessible can literally be a life saver.
- Proper exposure equipment – Lake Superior is COLD. This was going to be my first dive in this monster – I decided to go semi-dry using my Mares 7mm. More on that later.
I drove up to the Split Rock Lighthouse / Two Harbours area of Minnesota from Minneapolis and stayed at Superior Shores. The room was fine. While not over the top, there were a few nice amenities such as a full kitchen and fridge, hot tub, fireplace, and king size bed. In addition, the room looked directly out to Lake Superior. While I would like to see what a few other hotels look like in the area, I would stay here again. Back to the dive…
Day 1 dives were meant to orient you to the site – the Madiera. Our first dive would consist of a descent alongside the bow of the wreck to approximately 60 feet. As we all settled on the rocky bottom of Superior, the first thing you notice is the COLD. I remember looking down at my dive computer and noticed that we were in approximately 42°F water. While my semi-dry wetsuit seemed to be keeping the cold out, I did experience a minor leak in my mask as we swam in a Northern direction towards the stern. The water rushed in and, quite frankly, took my breath away. I like to think of myself as an experienced diver, but the sheer cold of the water took me by surprise. I know my heart raced for a few seconds, but I able to clear my mask and regain my composure – thank goodness for all those mask clearing drills during Open Water, Advanced, Rescue, and Dive Master.
Minnesota Historical Society - 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55102-1906 - 651-259-300
As we passed the stern, our instructor asked for the ‘thumbs up’ and once each of returned the gesture, we proceeded to the boat house at about 80 feet. While I prefer my dives in places like Costa Rica, I could not believe the visibility of Superior. Everything was clear and within sight. It seemed like we were there for only a few minutes when the instructor circled to the group to make our return to the stern area and into shallower water. I was actually quite ready go – while my core was fine, my hands began to feel a little numb. Soon after, we broke surface near our entry site and began to peal away our exposure gear and lay it out on the rocks for the warmth of the sun. After about an hour, we donned our equipment once more and headed back towards the buoys to make another decent.
The second dive was not as magical for me. My gloves were still wet (neoprene), my semi-dry was only semi-dry. In other words, I was a little damp and cold dropping back into ~ 40°F water. My hands became numb more quickly and I found myself looking at my gauges assessing bottom time over and over again hoping that someone else would run out of air so we could all go back to the warm sun.
Then and there, I decided my equipment strategy for my next set of cold water dives:
- Dry suit certification if I planned on more Superior Dives
- 2 pair of gloves for anything in Minnesota. Since you normally do 2 dives a day, each pair will give you fresh, dry gloves at the start. For me, it is all about the little things.
- Hot water in a thermos for surface intervals.
The class continued with dives three and four on the second day. Similar to the first day, the water was in the low 40’s to high 30’s, but once again, the visibility made it all worth while. Our third dive consisted of a reorientation of the dive site with more practice tying off our lines in the open. The forth dive enabled individual divers to make a swim through penetration of the wreck. While the hole was large enough to drive a Mac truck through, the wreckage seemed to close in around you and lure you deeper into the hull. All in all, this is a fantastic site to dive and learn the basics of wreck diving. Paired with a dry suit diver class, this site would make a nice 6 – 8 dive weekend. To continue on your wreck diving adventure, consider booking the Isle Royale trip with Scuba Center in Minneapolis – it is next on my list.
