cortez
May 17th, 2005, 12:21 PM
Coming off a great weekend at Cerulean, we are packing our bags and heading north to a little town called Kankakee... actually compared to Cadiz its a major metropolitan area :)
As most of you know, our next Explore Midwest Diving event is set to take place at Haigh Quarry on Saturday June 4th. Haigh is located just 60 minutes south of Chicago in the triplex of Bradley/Bourbonais/Kankakee townships. After our trip there last year, Haigh has become one of my favorite diving quarries - mostly for the wildlife and the topside amenities. It has pretty good visibility thanks to its divers and functioning eco-system and does not have nearly the temperature disparety that Mermet has. You can learn more about the quarry from their web-site at http://www.haighquarry.com (http://www.haighquarry.com/). I encourage everyone who is thinking of going to look at the web-site.
Like most Explore Midwest Diving events, this one will start with a site briefing in the morning at approximately 10:00 am. The site briefing will be provided by a Haigh Quarry staff member - to be named at a later date :-). Everyone will need to check in at the quarry office and pay the entrance fee. Afterwards look for the Midwest Scuba/Explore Midwest Diving EZ-Ups - located in the large grass area to the south east of the office - and check in there. If you've already filled out your Explore Midwest Diving paperwork, you just need to let me know that you are there. If you haven't completed your Explore Midwest Diving paperwork, you'll need to do so.
For those interested, we will probably try to do a group dinner around 5:30pm so that anyone doing a night dive (or two) can make it back in a reasonable amount of time. On that note, remember that responsible night diving requires each diver to have three lights - one primary, one backup and one marker - and each diver is responsible for providing their own equipment. After the night dive(s) we will probably meet somewhere for a happy hour, but we can decide that at the quarry.
The usual Explore Midwest Diving rental special - $40.00 for a weekend rental of a SCUBA system - is available. Make sure you make your reservations early as we are getting busier by the day. Rentals DO NOT include lights. If you are interested in any demo gear - maybe that new BCD or computer you've had your eye on - let Valerie know as soon as possible.
We have blocked off rooms at the Holiday Inn Express in Bourbonais. Those rooms are being held under the name Midwest Scuba until this Friday, May 20th. When you make your reservation, tell them you are with Midwest Scuba. This will ensure that you get the appropriate rooms and rates. The rate is $65.00/night. Their number is 815-932-4411. There are many other hotel options nearby, most offering a discounts for Haigh Quarry divers. All the hotels are approximately 15 minutes from the quarry.
If you are planning on going to Haigh with us, please drop me a note or give me a call. Its much easier to make arrangements with an estimated number - Thanks. I will also be creating an event on the calender so please feel free to RSVP there.
As always if anyone has any questions, please let me know. Hope to see you all on Saturday, June 4th!
Terry
More information about the Explore Midwest Diving program is available on our website at http://www.exploremidwestdiving.com.
As most of you know, our next Explore Midwest Diving event is set to take place at Haigh Quarry on Saturday June 4th. Haigh is located just 60 minutes south of Chicago in the triplex of Bradley/Bourbonais/Kankakee townships. After our trip there last year, Haigh has become one of my favorite diving quarries - mostly for the wildlife and the topside amenities. It has pretty good visibility thanks to its divers and functioning eco-system and does not have nearly the temperature disparety that Mermet has. You can learn more about the quarry from their web-site at http://www.haighquarry.com (http://www.haighquarry.com/). I encourage everyone who is thinking of going to look at the web-site.
Like most Explore Midwest Diving events, this one will start with a site briefing in the morning at approximately 10:00 am. The site briefing will be provided by a Haigh Quarry staff member - to be named at a later date :-). Everyone will need to check in at the quarry office and pay the entrance fee. Afterwards look for the Midwest Scuba/Explore Midwest Diving EZ-Ups - located in the large grass area to the south east of the office - and check in there. If you've already filled out your Explore Midwest Diving paperwork, you just need to let me know that you are there. If you haven't completed your Explore Midwest Diving paperwork, you'll need to do so.
For those interested, we will probably try to do a group dinner around 5:30pm so that anyone doing a night dive (or two) can make it back in a reasonable amount of time. On that note, remember that responsible night diving requires each diver to have three lights - one primary, one backup and one marker - and each diver is responsible for providing their own equipment. After the night dive(s) we will probably meet somewhere for a happy hour, but we can decide that at the quarry.
The usual Explore Midwest Diving rental special - $40.00 for a weekend rental of a SCUBA system - is available. Make sure you make your reservations early as we are getting busier by the day. Rentals DO NOT include lights. If you are interested in any demo gear - maybe that new BCD or computer you've had your eye on - let Valerie know as soon as possible.
We have blocked off rooms at the Holiday Inn Express in Bourbonais. Those rooms are being held under the name Midwest Scuba until this Friday, May 20th. When you make your reservation, tell them you are with Midwest Scuba. This will ensure that you get the appropriate rooms and rates. The rate is $65.00/night. Their number is 815-932-4411. There are many other hotel options nearby, most offering a discounts for Haigh Quarry divers. All the hotels are approximately 15 minutes from the quarry.
If you are planning on going to Haigh with us, please drop me a note or give me a call. Its much easier to make arrangements with an estimated number - Thanks. I will also be creating an event on the calender so please feel free to RSVP there.
As always if anyone has any questions, please let me know. Hope to see you all on Saturday, June 4th!
Terry
More information about the Explore Midwest Diving program is available on our website at http://www.exploremidwestdiving.com.