The Chicago Scuba Meetup Group

 
 
 

This month’s Dinner with Divers will be at Fat Duck Tavern and Grill.
http://www.fatduckgrill.com/
7218 Madison Street
Forest Park, IL. 60130
(708) 488 - 1493

They can accommodate separate checks.

Our DiNemasters will be Alice H. and Pamela Nelson who will help coordinate.

What's Dinner with Divers?

No Agenda.
No Presentation.
Just Breathing with Buddies.

We love our Monthly Chicago SCUBA Meetups listening to cool topics... but did you ever wish you could just spend some quality time with other SCUBA Divers living in Chicago? Maybe find out where they've been diving lately and where you might consider going next? See if you can find a compatible dive buddy? Connect with someone who may be organizing a trip soon?

Are you interested in being a DiNemaster? It’s super fun. Let us know!

 
 
 

This is a morning trip to dive on the Northerner (132 feet max depth) and then the Mahoning (64 feet max depth), on the Molly V with Captain Jitka Hanáková.

If you have the required experience and training for this dive, this is a great one! The Northerner is a beautiful, very intact wooden schooner, and it's small enough that one can see it all even in a short dive.

Because this wreck is near the depth limit of no-decompression diving, all divers should have prior Lake Michigan experience, and Advanced Open Water certification or higher (as well as nitrox certification). You should also be aware of rock-bottom gas planning, described at many places including here:
https://www.thinkingdiver.com/rock-bottom-gas-planning-recreational-diving/

Here are two descriptions of the Northerner with more history
https://www.shipwreckexplorers.com/schooner-northerner/
https://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Vessel/Details/466

The Mahoning is more broken up, but it has rope lines running off to the boiler which is neat to see on the lake bottom:
https://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Vessel/Details/405

We meet at the boat ramp at the Port Washington marina. What I like to do is to drop off my gear on the sidewalk at the far end of the boat ramp, and then park my car. Bring $3 in quarters to feed the parking meter!

If you want to go, add yourself to the waitlist. About 3 weeks out, I'll start to request payment (probably about $140) and put people on the "going" list, until we reach capacity with 6 divers. If you don't clear the waitlist, or can't make a morning dive, check with shipwreckexplorers.com to see if you can get on an afternoon dive as an individual.

Once you have paid, if you cannot attend, it is up to you to find a replacement. The organizer for the trip can help you with managing the wait list and contacting those on it to see if they can take your spot, or you can find a qualified replacement by some other means. You'll have to collect the fee from your replacement. Just let the organizer know who will be taking your slot, and make sure the other person is qualified and signs the CSM waiver.

As always, these dives are weather-dependent.

 
 
 

It's local shipwreck diving season! We'll celebrate with a photo tour of 16 local shipwrecks from Chicago and Milwaukee, ranging in depths from 35 to 165 feet (plus 2 from the Mackinac Bridge area in Michigan). Lake Michigan has some really cool and easily accessible wrecks! Along with the photos, we'll have tidbits of history on some of these wrecks.

You could say that Lake Michigan is a diver's delight! Come to find out more...

The network connection at The Atlantic has not proven to be reliable enough for livestreaming of the presentation over zoom. Instead, we'll record the presentation and make it available as a video after the event for those who are unable to attend in person. But attend in person if you can! Maybe you'll see a photo of yourself (if you dive locally), maybe you'll get inspired to do your first local dives this season, or maybe you'll just be happy that you can stay warm yet still see the wrecks in photos.

Most of the photos will be from Chris Jacobsen, who (with Holly) embraces cold with residences in Naperville and near Breckenridge, Colorado. Dean Nolan will add historical commentary.

7:00pm - Meet and Greet
7:30pm - Meeting
8:00pm (approx.) - Presentation

 
 
 

Dive to the SS Wisconsin with Jitka Hanáková on the Molly V. The Wisconsin is a 200 foot long ship that sank with the loss of lives in a storm on Oct. 29, 1929 (coincidentally the day of the stock market crash at the start of the Great Depression). The bow is at about 100 feet deep, and the hole in the side (where you can peek in and see some cars) is at about 120 feet.

Because this wreck is near the depth limit of no-decompression diving, all divers should have prior Lake Michigan experience, and Advanced Open Water certification or higher (as well as nitrox certification). You should also be aware of rock-bottom gas planning, described at many places including here:
https://www.thinkingdiver.com/rock-bottom-gas-planning-recreational-diving/

If you want to go, add yourself to the waitlist. About 3 weeks out, I'll start to request payment (probably about $140) and put people on the "going" list, until we reach capacity with 6 divers. If you don't clear the waitlist, or can't make a morning dive, check with shipwreckexplorers.com to see if you can get on an afternoon dive as an individual.

Once you have paid, if you cannot attend, it is up to you to find a replacement. The organizer for the trip can help you with managing the wait list and contacting those on it to see if they can take your spot, or you can find a qualified replacement by some other means. You'll have to collect the fee from your replacement. Just let the organizer know who will be taking your slot, and make sure the other person is qualified and signs the CSM waiver.

As always, these dives are weather-dependent.