|
Martha's Quarry is the Mid-South's best diving destination. Imagine
over forty acres of clear water without the hassle of boaters and
fishing line.
Underwater Forest
The
U/W forest is one of the best dives around. You can easily navigate the
wall swimming through a forest of standing hardwood trees. Rocks slope
away from the
wall and down forming a grass covered bank that is
just loaded with fish who enjoy the safety and cover of the numerous
trees. Average depth is 20' to 25'. If your airtime permits you can
keep on swimming around to the second forest near the south-west corner
of Martha's. Here the fish, turtles, etc. are even more numerous due to
the lack of traffic.
Rock Crusher House
The
Rock Crusher house is one of the most popular sites in the quarry. It
is a four story structure. The roof begins at approx. 8' and the very
bottom is around 48 to 50'. The Rock Crusher and most of the huge gears
and equipment are still inside and intact.
This is a very
accessible dive and makes a great site for Overhead Environment / Wreck
dive training. Not to mention it is alot of fun to swim down the many
stairwells !
Shaker House
At
the bottom of the Crusher House you will find a conveyor system that
leads upward to the top of the Shaker house. Here the roof is approx.
16' deep. The Shaker House is a three story structure with the
bottom being around 48'. This is a favorite hangout for the local
catfish and if you are lucky you may even get to see ' Miss Kitty '.
The resident giant of a catfish that weighs in around 65 lbs. !!
Coach Bus
Don't
expect to descend the line of the platform moored to the bus and see a
small school bus. Yes, it is a full size coach bus ! And with all the
windows and seats removed it makes a pretty cool swim through ( I also mean cool in a literal sense ).
The bus sits in 55' of water so don't forget the hood because the temp
down there averages 50 F (10 C) year around.
Pickup Truck
The location of the pickup truck is variable. Due to the fact that it is a favorite object
to be used during Advanced Search and Recovery training. So just ask
the Divemaster its current location so you can view the many painted
slogans on the truck (i.e., Divers do it ......, etc.)
Training Platforms
These training platforms make great places to practice your skills or perform them
during a training dive, due to the fact that they are conveniently located out of the
main stream of traffic. There is also a floating dock nearby to
practice your giant-stride or back-roll entries. Platform depth is
approx. 16'.
Pumphouses
The pumphouses are part of the endless effort to keep Martha's Quarry from being a
dive site when it was still in operation. Needless to say they lost.
However, now they make two great dive sites. Pumphouse one is home to
some rather large bass. Pumphouse number two is tucked within a small
cove in the far southeast corner
of the trench (one of the deeper places of the trench average 58' to 60'.
Bluegill Garden
Bluegill
Garden is located just east of the Crusher and Shaker house at the
beginning of the rock ridge. This is an excellent place to take a first
tour during an open-water training dive. This shallow ridge at about
15' is coverd with grass swarming with juvenile bluegill and bass who
are chasing them.
Underwater Kitchen
The
U/W kitchen is an arrangement of Kitchen appliances at 45'. Washer,
dryer, refrigerator, deep-freezer (no pun intended), television, stove,
and chairs. Everything your average underwater kitchen would require.
BTW: If you take a heading due North from the freezer you will run
right into the pickup truck.
The Trench
Average
depth of the trench is in the fifties. A good dive can be naturally
navigated along the top of the trench wall that averages 20' - 25' or
along the bottom of the trench as well. Depending on how much neoprene
you feel like putting on.
| 
Martha's Quarry 