Pictured kneeling, left to right: Dave Gorman, and Harrison Balthaser; standing, left to right: Brett Branning, Joe Parker, Bill Miller, Kevin Knapp, Joe Flynn, John Packer, Thomas Wilcox and Susan Laferriere.
Ignoring dropping temperatures and the threat of snow, the Welcome Lake Dive Rescue Team took their November training north to the Canadian border at Alexandria Bay. Arriving at the upstate New York site to freshly fallen snow, the team geared up with drysuits to withstand the frigid temperatures of the St. Lawrence River.
High-tech equipment that withstood the cold water test included underwater communications, an underwater camera, and an underwater propulsion unit (scooter). The team fulfilled the day's training agenda by practicing navigation techniques, deep diving, and rope patterns. Two of the members experienced diving with a drysuit for the first time, where regular clothing remains dry under a protective outer shell.
Traveling to the bay with its remarkably clear water (due to zebra mussels) was the idea of Captain Harrison Balthaser, who enjoyed wreck diving at the site during the summer. Everyone was in agreement that after diving the limited vis conditions all too common around here that diving in 50 feet of visibility would be a welcome change, no matter how cold the water, explained Balthaser. The team chartered a small bus for the excursion.
Photo by Susan Laferriere
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