Underwater Adventures in the Natural State. 

Story and Photography by Casey Crocker

My first breath underwater is a moment I will remember forever. That breath was both scary and exhilarating.  It also took a lot for me to come to peace within. That breath proved to be a way of rationalizing fear and enjoying an entirely different world. With that breath, I became unencumbered by gravity.  

SCUBA diving is an adventure into the unknown. Humans reside in a place where the world above water is every day.  In Arkansas, we can readily look to the mountain vistas for adventures in hiking. When you do try SCUBA, you’ll wonder why you didn’t try below sea level sooner.

My SCUBA story begins with wanting to add underwater photography to my utility belt.  We didn’t have many photos of diving at the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.  So, I went and became licensed to be an underwater photographer with Denise Weber-Trainnor of Jordan Marina.  I also wanted to continue my belief in Keep Arkansas Beautiful, Leave No Trace, and participate in several underwater cleanups.  I’ll tell you there are a lot of cans down at the bottom of a lake, so stop pitching them in the water. That first breath underwater took my breath away and changed me.  There was this whole new world to explore. It was scary, but one of the best feelings of my life. The SCUBA classes I attended immersed me in a new world, and I was fortunate to have a teacher who took the training kindly. 

I had met Denise about 18 years ago, and every time I ran into her and her husband, Dan, those meetings inevitably served as a reminder that I needed to put some fins on and dip my toes into the SCUBA game. I distinctly remember Denise writing on her underwater “space-pad” in grease pencil, “Do you trust me?” which I gesture, “I do,” with “OK” in sign language. Moments later, she shut off my oxygen, and I began the next phase of training.   I learned what it was like to be without air underwater, and I also knew I was in a safe place with good people.  I used Denise’s spare regulator, called an “octopus,” to breathe. Then she had me take off my mask and swim 100 feet away and back.  I then put my mask back on, and yes, it can be done while underwater. Not easy, but a good skill to learn.  

“That first breath underwater
took my breath away and changed me.
There was this whole new world
to explore—scary, but one of
the best feelings of my life.”

Denise began as a lifeguard in high school and recounted a story about a training season when she was 14 years old, 5 feet short and all of 100 pounds.  She rescued a pair of significantly larger people. Nonetheless, she was denied official certification because she was young. Determined more than ever, she was certified at 15 years old and moved on to become a Water Safety Instructor.  In college, she took the PADI Open Water Diver course and became a certified scuba diver. She and her husband, Dan, bought Jordan Marina in April of 2000, and she became a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor. Denise has 21 years of experience in teaching SCUBA. Denise didn’t sugarcoat anything.  She expected me to be an attentive student.  Denise says, “I really enjoy teaching SCUBA and watching the way people learn. Adults have more fears and want to know ‘why?’ My personal obstacle is neutral buoyancy, and I have to continue to overcome exhaling through my nose because it causes air to become trapped in my hood, which makes me rise upward. I had to practice exhaling into the respirator to stay neutrally buoyant and stabilized, which is essential for being a photographer. Incidentally, being a photographer underwater results in not having hands.  You only have your fins available in a somewhat awkward micro paddle.

SCUBA is like any sport – you have to communicate with others. Neither of you can hear the other, and vision is your only cue – hence using sign language. Also, I have inner ear trouble, so we slowly descend. If your ears hurt, then you are going too deep too quickly and need to stop and slightly ascend to equalize your internal pressure to the water pressure before continuing your descent.  The thermocline is the dividing line in a body of water where a distinct contrast occurs between the warmer waters above and the cooler waters below. 

Many lakes in Arkansas have GPS confirmed submerged sites, such as busses, boats, and entire towns (did you know the area of Greers Ferry Lake was once the town of Stark?) I’ve heard of underwater Geocaching sites that divers love to find, and I know there are many sunken treasures to find.   At Norfork, Densie and Scott took me to see the “Slow Poke,” a submerged boat wreck that was eerie to behold, but full of bass, brim, and playful perch 55 feet below the surface.  

Arkansas is home to over 2,400 named reservoirs and lakes, and we are blessed with over 600,000 acres of lake waters to enjoy. Our Largest lakes are (in order of volume) Lake Ouachita, Bull Shoals Lake,  Lake Dardanelle, and Greers Ferry. Many places also will rent you SCUBA gear, so you are not out the larger equipment cost to try diving. Denise adds, “As for adults, it is rare to really learn something completely new. We are usually just extending or expanding on a skill we already know how to perform. SCUBA diving is a whole new world. I am FREE! I am not restricted and can move in even more dimensions than when I am on land. I am not even subject to gravity.” The PADI Open Water diver course consists of three segments – classroom learning, confined water sessions, and four open water dives. Course materials are available in print or online. The course takes approximately three full days to complete. Once you are certified, you are certified for life.