Bonne Terre Mine Trip and Winter Training

4/21/2011 by Capt. Darrick Lorenzen | 0 Comments | 904 Views

Midwest Scuba Diving Magazine will be making a trip to Bonne Terre Mine for both training and excursions April 30^th and May 1^st. Five people have signed up for the trip. If any of my student or subscribers would like to attend you need to contact me ASAP at 773-732-8972.

 Dive centers within a 6 hour drive should consider Bonne Terre Mine http://2dive.com as a year round training site. From November through April most of us have to schedule trips to Florida or lose revenue and sacrifice safety by issuing referrals to students who need to complete open water training. You have a fabulous year round training site close to home. Air temperature in the Mine is a comfortable 70 degrees and water temperature is usually in the 60’s. Most divers are comfortable in a 5mm full suit with a hooded vest underneath or a two piece 6mm wetsuit. You will want to use a hood. Sometimes when I am photographing I don’t wear gloves and am comfortable during 45 minute dives.

The training area is called the “shallows”. This area is a very short swim from the dock which is used as the staging area for all diving operations. The dock is accessible after entering the Mine and descending with your gear approximately a ¼ mile down a visually spectacular path. My advice is to rent weights at the dock. Don’t carry 20 pounds of weight down because you are going to have to carry it up a steep incline when your dives are completed. The “shallows” is a wonderful training site with over 100 foot visibility. The training area can’t easily be stirred up because the bottom is coarse gravel. The max depth is approximately 22 feet. There are two buoyed descent lines on each side of the training area. Two different groups of divers can easily train in this area without getting in each other’s way.

The dive staff at Bonne Terre Mine is fabulous! They are a voluntary group of professionals and some of the best divers I have ever worked with. Bear Fritz, Director of Training, Mike Cody, Director of Tour Guides and his son Josh may be several of the best technical divers in the world. Other guides and instructors such as Steve Dozier, Katie Fritz, Sherri Cody and much to my surprise, my staff instructor, who is now a volunteer, Steve Tisinai are consummate professionals. These individuals have always been there to help me when I needed it. I am sure they will extend professional courtesy to all Dive centers. I have seen them handle stressful situations with poise.

If you need a local training site in winter this is the best option in the Midwest.

Also remember the “Treasure Hunt” http://www.2dive.com/treasurehunt/ June 4^th 2011. Call 314-209-7200 to make your reservations.