Shotline Diving

Connecting You to the Depths of the Great Lakes

Shore Access & Parking Info

🚩 Shore Access & Parking Shore Access: Keep It Open, Keep It Smart Every shore dive starts in someone else’s world — a cottage lane, city park, boat ramp or waterfront. How we show up is often the difference between “Welcome back” and “No more divers.” Treat this as your pre-dive access brief — a…

🚩 Shore Access & Parking

Shore Access: Keep It Open, Keep It Smart

Every shore dive starts in someone else’s world — a cottage lane, city park, boat ramp or waterfront. How we show up is often the difference between “Welcome back” and “No more divers.”

Treat this as your pre-dive access brief — a fast way to keep neighbours happy, enforcement away, and great sites open.
Always check each dive site record first — local signs and landowners override anything general.

🚗 Parking Basics
🏡 Etiquette
📞 Emergency

Shore entries • Shared spaces • Guest behaviour

🧰 Shore Diver’s Toolkit

3 Questions Before Every Dive

If you can answer these in 60 seconds, you’re already ahead of the game.

🚗

Can we park here?

Legally? Safely? Leave space for fire access?

🏡

Do we look like good guests?

Low noise, compact gear, no garbage, no shortcuts.

📞

Who calls if it goes wrong?

Phone charged, VHF ready, emergency numbers saved.

Guest Mindset: Above and Below the Waterline

You’re visiting two worlds — the surface belongs to locals; the wrecks and reefs to history. Leave both better than you found them.

✅ Green – Good Diver

Legal parking. Neat setup. Quiet team. Nothing to complain about.

⚠️ Amber – Close Call

Blocking shoulder. Loud. Short-cutting yards. Might get away with it… or not.

❌ Red – Site Closer

Emergency access blocked. Noise complaint. Landowner upset. Site gets shut down.

🚗 Parking: Tight, Shared & Often Watched

Most sites weren’t designed for divers. Plan your vehicles like you plan your dive.

Before You Leave Home

Plan Vehicles Like Part of the Dive

  • Carpool: fewer vehicles, fewer problems.
  • Drop, then move: gear drop-off, then legal park.
  • Don’t block: ramps, driveways, hydrants, shoulders.
  • Think like a fire truck: big, fast, zero patience.

On Site

Tickets, Tows & Losing Sites

  • Use only legal, signed parking areas.
  • Don’t “just for a second” in emergency zones.
  • If locals say it’s being enforced, believe them.
  • Can’t park legally? Dive another site.

10 min walk is cheaper than a tow — and far cheaper than losing access forever.

🧾 Quick Field Checklist

  • 🚒 Emergency access clear?
  • ✅ Vehicles parked 100% legally?
  • 🛑 No ramps, loops, driveways blocked?
  • 📷 Would this photo make divers look good?

🏡 Topside Etiquette: First Five Minutes Matter

Neighbours judge divers by how we arrive, gear up, and speak. Make a good impression quickly.

👟 Keep it Tight

  • No gear explosion — stage compactly.
  • Minimize early morning noise.
  • Use towels or vehicle doors to change modestly.
  • No leaning tanks or shortcuts through yards.

🚫 Respect Signs

  • Follow “no parking” and “no trespassing” signs.
  • Use marked public paths only.
  • Honor seasonal or wildlife closures.
  • If a group has special access, don’t abuse it.

👋 Talking to Locals

Divers are weird (to others). Be ready with a smile, a short answer, and a good attitude.

🤿 Other Divers

  • Clear entry points for others.
  • Share staging spots — rotate!
  • Training groups need room too.

🏘️ Neighbours & Curious Onlookers

  • Offer friendly, simple explanations.
  • Adjust if someone’s upset.
  • Clear sidewalks and walkways.
  • If you damage something, own it.

📞 Emergency & Radio

Put these numbers in your phone before the dive. Don’t wait for a crisis.

📍 On Land – 911

Ontario, Québec and U.S. Great Lakes states: call 911 for police, fire, ambulance.

🌊 On the Water – VHF Ch 16

  • 🇨🇦 CCG: 1-800-267-7270
  • 🇺🇸 USCG: 1-800-321-4400
  • Channel 16 = calling + distress.

☑️ Radio & Phone Checklist

  • All phones charged & dry-stored.
  • One person knows the script.
  • VHF call = who, where, what, how many.

🛍️ Support Local

Communities remember who supports them — and who just uses their parking.

☕ Spend Small

  • Buy coffee locally, not at big chains.
  • Fuel up in town if you can.
  • Use bakeries, diners, small groceries.

📣 Your Reputation Matters

One tidy diver, one coffee, one friendly chat — that’s often the difference between “divers are great” and “not them again.”
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