Diving New England Waters since 1963
Diving New England Waters since 1963

New England Wreck Symposium 2023

Registration: 8:30am
Presentations: 9am

New England Wreck Symposium

New England Wreck Diving goes back to the very first days of diving. Before Sidescan Sonar or Multibeam Echo Sonars were used to find these sunken vessels, divers would ride along with dredgers in hopes of finding “numbers” (aka latitude/longitude) to their newest diving spot.

In February 2019, SECONN co-hosted the revamped New England Wreck Symposium with the UConn Avery Point Scuba Club. Held on Avery Point’s beautiful campus in Groton, the event brought divers and non-divers from all six New England states! With local explorers such as David Caldwell & Heather Knowles, Mark Munro, Captain Bill Palmer, Evan Kovacs, and more the topics cover all aspects of wreck diving and exploration.

2021 found us experiencing the symposium from a different environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Zoom enabled us to still hear tales of underwater exploration, but we are excited and hopeful to be planning the 2023 event!

With both new and returning faces, keep an eye out as we fill our schedule with presentations that cover all aspects of New England Wreck diving!

NEWS 2023 Lineup:

Adventures in Lake Champlain: Exploring New England’s Lake Shipwrecks 

by Heather Knowles and David Caldwell

Lake Champlain has much to offer the cold water shipwreck diver. Whether you are a recreational diver or a technical diver, there are great dives to be found that will provide a glimpse into history as well as offer something a bit different than ocean wreck diving with well preserved wrecks in the fresh water environment. With a DPV, it is possible to get creative and even reach some of those wrecks from shore. Join us as we share some of our experiences exploring the fascinating shipwrecks of Lake Champlain!

Heather Knowles and David Caldwell are the co-founders of Northern Atlantic Dive Expeditions, Inc. They operate their dive charter boat, Gauntlet, with a focus on shipwreck diving and exploration. Heather and Dave are Fellows of the Explorers Club, and in addition to exploring and making discoveries within their local waters, they have had the privilege of exploring some of the world’s notable shipwrecks off the U.S. East Coast, Canada, and in the Mediterranean, South Pacific and South China Sea.
Northern Atlantic Dive Expeditions Website

Long Island Divers Association Mission Accomplished

by Barry Lipsky

Beneath the Sea 2020 Diver of the Year Barry Lipsky  of the Long Island Divers Association describes the accomplishments they have prevailed on from town beach restrictions lifted for divers-only access, to saving the most precious marine structure on Long Island set to be destroyed, and lastly to working with big government officials in securing and placing a pair of 100-foot tug boats for the creation of artificial reefs.

Long Island Divers Association Website

Over the Hill and Under the Sea

by Bob Foster
For some of us, the passion for diving never leaves even though we continue to age. Certainly physical fitness plays a critical role in our ability to dive, but there are a number of other adjustments that we old divers find can extend our stay in the sport. In this talk I’ll outline a number of adjustments made by myself and three other “mature” divers that have allowed us to continue actively diving well past the typical “expiration” date. If you’re on the downward slope, you might come way with some ideas to extend your stay – if you’re a younger diver it might help to explain why the older divers you encounter do some seemingly weird things.

Rebreather 101

by Mark Munro

Over the last twenty years rebreathers have become more and more pervasive in the dive community and today you’ll likely see them at any dive destination. Rebreathers may not have come to the attention of most divers until the recent past but they’ve actually been around much longer than you may think. Mark will be covering a brief history of rebreathers, the basics of how rebreathers work and also take a look at the history of the homebuilt rebreather community at a time when commercial rebreathers were not readily available to the general public.

 Exploring Long Island Sound – RECOVER THE DISCOVERY

by Capt. Denis Habza

Have you ever wondered if there is anything to dive in the Long Island Sound? What is the visibility like, are there any shipwrecks? Captain Denis will regale you with his experiences having explored vast swaths of this unique estuary and the challenges that arise when diving in it. 

What’s in your kit: Items required for Diving First Aid

by Dr. David Charash
This presentation will cover required items for divers, dive boats, dive operations, expeditions, and both commercial, USCG, IMCA guidelines.

Scuba Voodoo
What Voodoo should you do?

by Jeff Godfrey

A primer on common decompression models, gradient factors, deep stops, recommendations for missed deco etc. 

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