ADAM HAYDOCK

Shawnee National Forest

The Shawnee National Forest is a the biggest woods located on the southern sandstone escarpment of Illinois.  320 Million years ago there was an ocean that covered the lands we see today in the Shawnee but only folded mud and sandstone strata layers are left from that time. We drove down to the Garden Of the Gods to view the sandstone spires that stood tall over the ridge in the Shawnee.

  It was pretty interesting to see the patterns in the rock and to see out into the vista where trees lined the rolling hills and eagles flew into the heated updrafts from the valley below. We hiked around in the 90 degree heat with the humidity soaking the air like a Puerto Rican rain forest.

 It was nice to get away from the city and to spend some time with as we needed a quick escape.

 After Garden of the Gods we hiked on the backpack trail of the Shawnee and it was pretty nice for Illinois standards!

 The pine and maple trees were in abundance and we followed a ridge that took us to come more remote overlooks which was a lot nicer than the audience that the Garden of the Gods had parading through. 

We enjoyed the hike around as it looped back towards where we started.  Even though it was a few miles, we finished it in a short period of time and found ourselves back a the car wondering what to do.  We decided on going to Bell Spring Recreational Area which was a half hour drive from where we were.

After Bell Smith Springs we figured we would drive up to The Little Grand Canyon Section and head home since we saw a lot of what we set out to see anyway so instead of camping for the night we headed up to Little Grand Canyon next.

It took almost an hour and a half to get up there and we got up there in time for another hour before the sun started to go down.  The Little Grand Canyon section of the Shawnee National Forest is interesting as it is a gorge and prob the biggest one for Illinois standards.

 I took off to the bottom of the canyon to get a view of this place.

There was a family that had emotional ranges form yelling to crying which took a bit away from the sound quality that the canyon has but this place is a must visit if you are in the area and do not have much else to do.

Unfortunately, the trail was flooded so I was not able to complete a loop so I just ran back up the trail and we headed back to Chicago.   It was a lot of driving but it was nice to get away for a day.

After years of talking about going out to the SS wisconsin I was finally able to get out there and see this historic shipwreck 5 miles off Simmon Island Harbor in Kenosha. I was nice to get some dive time with my friend Leo Quartullo once again and finally get a chance to go diving with Jack Schafer on his boat.

Jack brings some interesting Great Lakes diving experience as he has been diving the great lakes for over 30 years and brings a great perspective to Shipwreck diving and the way he dives.  I was grateful to get the invite to join these two dive monsters out to the shipwreck of the S.S. Wisconsin.

  In 1929, the SS Wisconsin sprung a leak and took 9 lives with her down to a depth of 130 of water. she is a passenger and cargo metal steamer that still has multiple cars including a model T inside.

 Today the wreckage is deteriorating and every year that goes by, the shipwreck appears to be falling apart more and more, rooms collapsing, the cars are rotting out, and the integrity of the shipwreck can start to become something a hazard.  there are a lot of places to penetrate and take a tour on a through trip but attention should yield to caution as it can be quite dangerous to penetrate this wreck.

We set out of Simmon Island harbor and get out to the Bouy of the SS Wisconsin to find another dive charter wrapping up their dives on the wreck so we got to pull in just in time as they were leaving. We secured ourselves to the mouring bouy and worked our way into our gear which was not as easy as we were on a 25ft bayliner and had to put everything together on the floor which made for some interesting setup. 

I just got my regulators serviced and drysuit neck seal repaired so I wanted to make sure I got in a good check out dive as well as navigate around the shipwreck to see where we could enter and exit from on our second dive.  Leo and I proceed to enter the water and descend down to around 90ft which put us right on the deck of the SS Wisconsin.

I decided to opt out of the second dive due to my neck seal being too tight which might have been too cautious but it was a bit tight and headache inducing after I got out of the water so I enjoyed being the first hand on deck and helping Jack and Leo prep for the second dive.

 I had a fantastic time on the water and it was great to hang out with friends and enjoy visiting our historic wrecks of the great lakes.

I noticed the water at the surface to be super clear and quite cold, colder and clearer than it was at the surface yesterday.  We continued our descent down the line and at around 100ft. down,  the stern of there Home and the bottom of the lake was noticeable.  I always get a kick out of descending down into the depths as I watch a historic shipwreck emerge from the haze and become more identifiable with the deeper we get.  Its like a foggy cemetery at dusk with a desert of sand and silt surrounding that stretches into the horizon around the wooden relic. 
   

Here is a link to some photos that are a bit better than how these photos have turned out.



Surface Interval at the Rouse Simmons

On November 22nd. 1912, the Rouse Simmons was determined to get to Chicago with her load of Christmas trees.

Captain Schuenemann and a crew of around 15-20 people set out for Chicago but never made it.

 She remained a mystery for almost 60 years while Christmas trees would periodically wash up onto shore including the captains wallet which came up in a fisherman's net.



Shipwreck of the Rouse Simmons

The Wisconsin Historical Society has done a fantastic job with documenting the Rouse Simmons and was also able to identify some more clues as to her final voyage to Chicago.

Old Christmas trees in the holds of the Rouse Simmons Rouse Simmons Photo By: Jitka Hanakova www.shipwreckexplorers.com

  Its a very interesting read and I highly recommend checking it out along with the nice pictures that have been taken to document this historic ghost ship landmark.

The Rouse Simmons   Rouse Simmons Photo By: Jitka Hanakova www.shipwreckexplorers.com

After an hour and a half surface interval and a bit of a ride over to the Rouse from the Vernon, we gear up and make our descent down the line to the Rouse Simmons.

 The conditions were a bit darker than they were on the Vernon  

Going back to harbor from the Rouse Simmons

SHIPWRECK EXPLORERS: http://shipwreckexplorers.com/

WISCONSIN SHIPWRECKS: http://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Vessel/Details/541?region=Index

FLICKR:

YOU TUBE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrnqheC_QQk

 

From the Shipwreck of the Vernon

On October 25th.1887, the Vernon set out for Mackinac Island making periodic stops along the way to pick up cargo and passengers.

The only survivor was found two days later on a small boat.

Reports have been noted that she might have been overloaded and her cargo doors were open which might have caused the Vernon to founder where she lies today.

Mike Apke, Leo Quartullo, Ellery Kretlow,  stayed in Two Rivers the night before so we could get a good night sleep and make our way over to the harbor by 730am. 

Vernon Shipwreck Photo By; Jitka Hanakova

I was not able to get the best sleep due to Chris snoring like he was sawing logs all night.

In my opinion, she is one of the most impressive Lake Michigan shipwrecks that can be found above 220ft.

Vernon Shipwreck Photo By; Jitka Hanakova

She is very well preserved and intact listing on a 20-30 degree angle on her starboard side. 

Some of her cargo is scattered on her starboard side debris field and scattered about inside her holds.

  I was absolutely impressed with this shipwreck but at a max depth of 190ft, the narcosis was pretty apparent.

  My focus was on our dive plan and procedure so I stuck to the plan until I saw a nice entry point into the wreck with an obvious exit point so we proceeded through and I saw Walter hanging out in the cut. 

I continued to follow the wreck to the other side but realized we were descending down and scraped 190ft as we exited through the other side.

Vernon Shipwreck Photo By; Jitka Hanakova

 We camp back up to a depth of 175 and continued with our dive until it was time to ascend back up to the surface.

 We got some pics here and there but they did not turn out the way I wanted them. 

Vernon Shipwreck Photo By; Jitka Hanakova

Thankfully Jitka was taking photographs and Ellery was using a GoPro and took the best video that I have seen of the Vernon to date.

We started our ascent up and followed our decompression procedure flawlessly and got back on the boat without any incident.

Vernon Shipwreck Photo By; Jitka Hanakova

 Next to the Sandusky and the Eber Ward, the Vernon was the most impressive shipwreck I have seen in Lake Michigan thus far. 

Wisconsin Shipwrecks: http://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Vessel/Details/624?region=Index