December 13, 2018

Diving Into History: Exploring the Depths of a Decommissioned Atlas Nuclear Missile Silo

December 13, 2018/ Meghan Oaks

In a dimly lit passage, line with corrugated metal some 50 feet underground, we donned our dive gear: pulling on our dry suits, shrugging our arms through the harness on our backplate and wing, tugging our hoods down and over our heads, and pulling our gloves on. Fins in hand, we then walked over to a set of stairs - 48 in all - suspsended precariously 75 feet above the surface of the water. We were in a giant concrete tube about 60 feet in diameter and 200 feet tall. Above us, access to the surface was sealed off by a set of 25 ton nuclear blast-resistant steel doors. Below us, 100 feet of inky black but crystal clear water. Carefully, we placed our feet on each step, gripping the handrails for dear life, and made our way down first the wooden steps, which gave way to metal steps, and finally a metal ramp, to a floating dock.

October 31, 2016

Nature Diving in Fjord Norway

October 31, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

When one thinks of ocean diving, places like the Caribbean or the South Pacific, popular warm water dive locations, come to mind. Here, there are beautiful coral reefs, full of colorful fish, big creatures, and small delights. While warm water diving is always nice, there is still so much of the ocean that can be dived, if only you're willing to deal with the cold. Norway was one such place.

July 08, 2016

Travel Review: Gulen Dive Resort

July 08, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

I'm not sure how, but a while ago, Aaron learned about Gulen Dive Resort, a small dive resort about two hours (give or take) north of Bergen, nestled in among the fjords of Western Norway. When he saw they had a house reef with nudibranchs, some of which aren't found anywhere else, AND World War II shipwreck diving, it jumped to pretty close to the top of his list of places to dive. When my sister and I decided to meet up in Norway, and she agree to do some babysitting, we knew we could make it work.