My Perfect Dive...

So one evening this summer, I was editing the days catch, while watching Jaws. I realized that as much as I love wreck diving in the Great Lakes, I missed those big toothy things that accompanied me on every dive on a recent liveaboard in Turks and Caicos...

After a crappy 30-second close cropping, this image came about. I uploaded it to Facebook, where it damn-near went viral. I was amazed at the number of people who were surprised to learn that we had sharks in Lake Huron!

After about 100 comments, I finally 'fessed up.

Since then, I have been hoping that our current invasive species... zebra mussels, round gobies and the like... will one day be replaced with sharks and mantas!

In the mean time, this photo summarizes my "perfect dive".

Hi Stoo,

Looks like the Arabia shipwreck in Toby, to me. Nice Shot.

I too, am waiting to see my first Bull Shark in the Great Lakes. I hear they can conserve thier salt intake and manage fresh water for quite some time.

Anyway, I would image sharks in Lake Huron would be old news as they would have to come through Lakes Ontario and Erie first, assuming thier entry by the St. Lawrence River.

Interestingly enough, we do have jellyfish though. Here is a photograph of Craspedacusta sowerbyi Lankseter, a jellyfish that was introduced to the Great Lakes through aquatic plants from the Yangtze River in China by the aquarium trade. They only grow to about the size of a "toonie" (25-50mm) if you include the tentacles.

I got the image diving the Old Welland Canal here in Niagara. First thoughts i had when swimming through a large group of them were, "I wonder if these are poisonous?". Obviously not, but something to consider when meeting any introduced species anywhere.

Arabia it is... right out my front door! I'd heard of those jellies, but yours is the first pic I've seen of one. I suspect they'll have trouble navigating the Welland Canal and St. Clair before they make it up our way...

I might be down your way this weekend... We're trying to sneak a dive in at The Tiller... I was there last December and had had amazing vis!

Those are nice shots of the Tiller Wreck. Funny enough, I don't make it out there that often, being that its almost sitting on my front doorstep. Down here, we are more interested in diving Lake Erie. The "C.B. Benson" and the "Carlingford" are big name wrecks down here. They are a little more difficult to get to, with the "Benson" 7 miles out and the "Carlingford" 12 miles out into lake Erie. Another nice wreck is the "Raleigh" which is close to shore in the shallows and a good wreck to end your last dive of the day.

Good luck with your dive on the Tiller Wreck. I hear it is going to be cold for the next few days. As for myself, I will be off to a "couple's weekend" in Niagara Falls. We are using it as a sort of dry run for dive vacations later this winter.

Here are a two shots of the "Arabia" that I took on my usual pilgrimage to Tobermory that I do each year. These shots were taken in 2011 when I was checking out the available light capabilities of my D7000. While they are not anything special, I do like the sense of space in both images.

This year's trip to Toby was a washout, as we encountered the only bad weather to be had in the month of August during our time in Toby. Charter boats were not leaving the dock and the wind was so bad dogs were getting blown off thier chains. I hope next year's weather will be better.

Nice... I get down to Lake Erie once a year, maybe twice. We tend to head out around Long Point and dive the St. James, Atlantic, Tradewind. Having said that, we didn't make it all this year (renos in Tob...) so I spent the entire season there pretty much. I'm heading up again this weekend, and hope to get in, but it's been pretty storm recently.

You might have seen this, shot when Sandy passed by: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0okh6dxfgs