It’s been a few years but I have finally gotten back up to Presque Isle, MI in Lake Huron. It’s been far too long! I realize that I just went on-and-on about how Isle Royale is some of the best diving in the Great Lakes but honestly so is Presque Isle. I would say Presque Isle diving in Lake Huron is just as good as Isle Royale diving, some may even like it better. I still like seeing the mussel-less shipwrecks in Lake Superior but Presque Isle is pretty extraordinary diving. You shouldn’t miss either destination.
Depending on what your definition of awesome diving is I would classify Presque Isle, MI as having more “hollywood-type” wrecks. By that I mean stunning 100ft+ visibility and upright fully-intact schooners with masts still standing. The big difference is everything is covered in quagga mussels; You’re essentially viewing quagga mussel-shaped wrecks but there is a big benefit here. The visibility can be spectacular; I don’t think I’ve ever had less than 50ft (~15m) although I’m sure it happens.
75-100ft+ (30m+) visibility seems to be the norm in my experience.
I really love the diving in Presque Isle. It’s hard not to like. The visibility is often Caribbean-like even at 200ft (~60m) and the thermocline is often in the low 60 degrees (12c to 18c) later in the summer where you’ll spend the bulk of your deco stops. It’s also pretty amazing to have ambient light at 200ft (60m). I’m used to diving in New England and Lake Champlain where it’s often a night dive below 100ft.
I believe this was also my 4th dive trip to Presque Isle and my first time diving with Brian Anderson (Blackdog Charters). Previously I’ve dove up here on my friend Jitka’s boat (Molly V/Shipwreck Explorers) and private boats. I’ve also went out once with Capt. Nick who runs Great Lakes Divers.
The Dive Charter
Capt. Brian Anderson runs Blackdog Charters. His boat is a 36′ Uniflite Sport Sedan with twin Cummins 370HP diesel motors. It’s fast, has a nice large swim platform and a canopy for protection from the sun/elements.
He has plenty of room for 6 rebreather divers but you should avoid bringing large bins and gear bags on the boat. 4 rebreathers/dive setups end up on one of the two back benches on the stern/transom while the other 2 setups end up on a bench inside the cabin on the starboard side
Brian has a nice numbered basket setup/system where you can store all of your diving accruements and shit. He has plenty of cabin space for dry gear.
I know that I have pretty much said the same thing for Isle Royal but this also applies to Presque Isle. The diving is incredible. Brian also runs a fantastic dive operation and he is often booked up several seasons. If you want to dive there you need to sign up and wait or hope someone cancels. There is a reason he is booked out years in advance with plenty of repeat customers.
Brian has also beautifully mastered the technique of cooking cinnamon rolls on a boat. These are a staple during your surface interval and go fast! They are in fact so popular that my local diver charter also adopted this same practice 🙂
Just about the only slightly negative thing I can say about Brian’s boat is that their seems to be a small but growing population of spiders who like to call the boat home 🙂 I’m only partially joking here. Anyway I’ll take the spiders for world-class wreck diving.
How to get there?
For me it involves driving 14.5 hours, cutting through Canada above Lake Erie and then driving through Michigan. I can also drive around the Great Lakes through the U.S. but it adds 2 hours of driving. The people that live in the mid-west have it much easier.
The boat is docked in the Presque Isle State Harbor. It is a marina with good facilities (bathrooms, showers, laundry) run by the Michigan DNR. Presque Isle is a small unincorporated community located within Presque Isle Township along Lake Huron. It is approximately 15 miles north of Alpena, and 15 miles south of Rogers City.
Alpena and Rogers City are both bigger cities with a large variety of restaurants, and major stores/chains. Alpena even has a large international airport that Delta flies into. 🙂 Hint: it’s not really a large airport; I’m joking.
What has changed in Presque Isle since I was last here?
Unfortunately there is no longer the Portage Restaurant in the marina. The restaurant closed down partially due to the greed of the marina (charging too much rent) and the building was demolished. The Portage Store and Deli has also changed owners multiple times. Unfortunately they also don’t often open until 8am which limits coffee and breakfast options in the morning. Their ice cream selection however is still fantastic!
NOAA Moorings
One positive thing is that NOAA is now actively maintaining moorings even on the deeper wrecks in Presque Isle. Rather than being tied into the wrecks. They sank what looks like heavy mooring blocks and have heavy-duty steel rope/wire that goes up to a large metal sub-float at ~30ft. From here there is a line of polypropylene that goes to the mooring buoy on the surface with a tag line.
My only major complaint is there is way too much scope going from the sub-floats to the surface buoy. Deco would be a little more enjoyable if there was a bit more tension and far less scope on the line. Just something to keep in mind if you have 6 rebreathers divers hanging onto a line and they’re all fucking with their buoyancy and adding/flushing O2. Of course I know you’re all just perfect and would never mess up your buoyancy. I found it easier to deco mid-water column for the last 10-20ft, provided there was no current.
The other nice thing is now that the mooring lines are off the wrecks it does make for better photos. In past I’ve strategically photoshopped out the mooring lines that were attached to the bow or stern because I felt like they messed up the image. Unfortunately there are still a fair amount of ghost lines / old mooring on the wrecks. It would be really nice if these were eventually cleaned up.
What else is there to do?
You mean besides diving? There are a couple historical lighthouses in Presque Isle that are worth viewing. The Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center in Alpena. MI is worth the visit and free although if I worked there I would probably go clinically insane because they have Bruce Springsteen’s version of “15 miles on the Erie Canal” constantly playing on repeat in the shipwreck exhibits. 🙂
The Austin Brothers Beer Company in Alpena is a fantastic brewery with great food. I highly recommend that place if you’re into that sort of thing. We ate there a lot; Their beer is great.
Rogers City has the Great Lakes Lore Maritime Museum which is worth a visit if you get blown out. If you’re familiar with the wreck of the Carl D. Bradley. Nearly all of her crew hailed from Rogers City and other nearby Presque Isle County towns.
Up North 23 Restaurant in Rogers City is also pretty good.
Dive Conditions
The water temperature is almost always 38-40f (~4c) on the bottom. I’m sure you’re noticing a pattern here? You should be wearing undergarments appropriate for these water temperatures. I highly recommend heat and dry gloves although my first ever trip in Presque Isle I did not have any heat and was still able to manage 90-120 minute runtimes just fine.
Deco temperatures can vary wildly depending on the time of the year but in my experience you can get a really nice thermocline in August. The first time I ever dove in Presque Isle we were hitting 60 degrees above 60ft. It was awesome. I would say you can expect high 50s-low 60s above 40ft which makes deco very pleasant. Later in August or early September is warm but then you have to worry about storms.
The visibility is often 75-100ft (~30m). I’ve seldom had less than 50ft (~15m) of visibility but I am sure it happens.
A lot of the wrecks are somewhat close to shore and you can expect about a 30 minute boat ride. I usually start gearing up and getting into my drysuit on the way out there unless it’s super hot and humid day.
Accommodations
We’ve always stayed at the Grand Lake Resort which I like. They have nice rooms, air conditioning, and a separate building with a kitchen area / recreational space. Some of the rooms have their own kitchenettes and are closer to the water. I’ve also stayed at the Parker House Cottages before which I hear have been recently remodeled.
This time we stayed at the Fireside Inn which is also on the other side of Grand Lake. The Fireside Inn is an old-school very rustic inn with rooms and cabins. I’m not going to lie here. The Grand Lake Resort is more comfortable but the Fireside Inn also serves breakfast and dinner which is included in the cost and the rooms are much cheaper. It’s a toss up. They both have their own charm. A lot of families (read, noisy children) seems to love the Fireside Inn. There is also unfortunately no WiFi and very little cell coverage here which sort of sucks for me but some people enjoy that sort of off-the-grid vibe. The Fireside Inn also has an nice patio outside for relaxing and hanging out that overlooks the Grand Lake.
If I stayed at the Fireside Inn again I would bring my own box fan for the room. Unfortunately there is no air conditioning and we happened to be there when it was 90 degrees outside. You also have to bring your own sheets, blankets and pillows to the Fireside Inn.
The Wrecks
If you’re reading this post then I probably don’t have to explain the wrecks to you. You’ve no doubt seen some of Becky Schott’s spectacular images. Most of the technical wrecks are in the 165-210ft (50-64m) range with others like the Ohio or M.F. Merrick around 300ft (~100m).
See here for a list: https://thunderbay.noaa.gov/shipwrecks/
They should really call Presque Isle schooner alley. You have the Cornelia B. Windiate, Typo, Kyle Spangler, Defiance, John J. Audobun. These are all mostly intact and upright schooners that by themselves are awesome. I know I’ve skipped some of the deeper ones and of course shallow ones.
The other two major wrecks are the SS Norman and SS Florida. The SS Florida was a wooden package freighter while the SS Norman was a steel bulk freighter. These are easily worth multiple days of diving.
SS Florida
SS Norman
Cornelia B. Windiate
Typo
John J. Audubun
Kyle Spangler
What else? The wrecks are great. Because the schooners are smaller you don’t really need to spend a huge bottom time on these wrecks if you don’t want. Honestly 25 minutes of bottom time is sufficient and will keep your deco times reasonable. The first couple trips I was doing 30-35 minutes because I was an awe of these wrecks.
The Florida and Norman are different stories. These are worth longer bottom times and multiple dives. They’re large wrecks with lots to see and explore. Honestly all the wrecks there are worth multiple dives, I always see something new especially when I’m not carrying a camera or GoPro.
Final Thoughts
Presque Isle should really be at the top of your list if you like wreck diving and have experience in cold water. It’s not that remote compared to places like Whitefish Bay or Isle Royale or Rossport, Ontario which makes it an easy destination for a lot of people. Alpena has an airport you can fly into but the drive is pretty easy. There are decent restaurant options in both Alpena and Rogers City.
Like a lot of dive destinations, you can get blown out. It’s definitely most of a risk late August/early September. I would recommend scheduling 6 or 7 days of diving. I’ve personally been quite lucky in my Presque Isle trips and we’ve only lost full 1 day or one afternoon dive.
Brian (Blackdog Charters) runs a good boat and has a great sense of humor. While there are other transient dive charter boats that run trips to Presque Isle, Brian’s home base is Presque Isle and is your best option however he does book up quickly. He also occasionally moves the boat to places like the Straits of Mackinac which also has great diving.
Presque Isle will always have a special place in my heart because it was the first rebreather trimix trip I took after I had just complicated my Normoxic CCR cert originally on my rEvo. When I did my dive training in New England I was used to diving in 10-15ft of visibility or ~30ft in the St Lawrence River. You could imagine my surprise when my first Great Lakes dive ever was on the SS Florida with ambient light and 100ft+ of visibility. I was forever hooked on Great Lakes diving. I was not used to seeing wrecks this intact.
