LAKE RONKONKOMA

DIRECTIONS:                             (Lake Ronkonkoma, Suffolk County)

Take the Long Island Expressway to Exit 59. Make the second left off the service road to Pond Road, which will turn into Lake Shore Road. Lake Shore runs along the lake, and parking can be found in a few spots.

CONDITIONS:

I would not recommend Lake Ronkonkoma to many divers. The mud bottom here reduces visibility to zero as soon as it is disturbed. I have only done two dives here. One was recreational, and I didn't see or find anything that would make me want to return. The second, was to assist the Ronkonkoma Fire Department in a search and recovery drill for its scuba team.

The lake is, however, enjoyed by some divers during winter months. Experienced ice divers enjoy cutting a hole in the winter ice and then dropping through. These divers usually find great visibility since they are suspended above the silty bottom. A word of caution: ice diving is not for all divers. It requires specialized skills and should not be attempted without the proper equipment and professional training.

A few years ago a drought caused the lakes water level to fall. Local treasure hunters flocked to the site. Now able to wade out further than ever before they recovered quite a few gold rings and lots of old coins. Divers who utilize metal detectors can still take advantage of the lake and they don't even need drought conditions to access the most lucrative sites.

For recreational diving without a metal detector, during the normal spring to fall season, Lake Ronkonkoma offers divers little more than an opportunity to rinse salt off of their dive gear.

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