Rodney Pits

[jafo]

Has anyone been diving at the Rodney Pits in Rodney Iowa? I've heard that people have, but you have to have permission to do so.

[Scubagal]

Has anyone been diving at the Rodney Pits in Rodney Iowa? I've heard that people have, but you have to have permission to do so.

I posted this over on Scubaboard but just in case you didn't see that I'm posting it here too.

I did my open water certification dives in Rodney, IA (according to my log book) however it's been a few years and I have no idea if we were at Rodney Pits or not. We're thinking about checking it out this weekend or next. Our local dive club is always looking for new places to dive. I've placed numerous calls to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Monona County Economic Development Partnership to inquire if diving is allowed at the Rodney Pits but so far I haven't been able to reach anyone who knows. I guess we'll just try it and see. I'll be sure to post a mini report and some pictures if we get over there.

Have you ever been to the Atlantic Quarry in Atlantic, IA? We were diving there the last couple of weekends. Visibility was stellar two weeks ago, here's a link to some pictures. Atlantic Quarry photos (http://forum.go-scuba.net/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=79)

[jafo]

Wow Great pictures. No, I haven't been there YET! I might have to check this out!

[Scubagal]

Wow Great pictures. No, I haven't been there YET! I might have to check this out!

Regarding the pictures, thanks!

Lloyd and I did a dive at the Rodney Pits Recreation Area on Sunday. There are signs posted at each lake/pit that say "Scuba Diving by Permission Only". You can obtain permission by calling the Monona County Conservation Board at 712-423-2400 or by emailing mccb@longlines.com. I had made numerous calls to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources trying to find out who to contact. When we arrived we located the phone number to call on one of the information boards.

The lake we decided to dive first was called Johnston. Visibility was between 5-10 ft. Lloyd spotted a catfish and a few bass, my only sightings were two bass and a school of baby bass. The fish are obviously not used to seeing divers and took off the minute they saw us. We followed the shoreline around the lake so we didn't go very deep. Surface temps were around 74 degrees with the thermocline right at 15 ft. We had planned to dive at the other lake located at Peters Park, however a park ranger showed up and we decided to call it a day. Now we know who to call for permission. ;) The third lake/pit, Rodney, is closed and had a sign that said Keep Out.

There are restrooms, picnic tables, grills, a covered shelter, vault toilets, and camping sites that include fire pits at Peters Park. Below is a link to the Monona County Conservation Board website that has a brief description of the Rodney Pits Recreation Area including a picture.
Rodney Pits Recreation Area (http://www.mononacountyconservation.com/scenic.htm).

I've emailed the board to inquire if our local dive club could hold a dive outing there. Hope this information helps! It's always nice to find another local dive site.