12 Responses to “Norfork”

1. admin says:

   August 15, 2010 at 11:34 am

   August 2010

   Just got back from Norfork and had a great time. Diving conditions were not the best due to the extreme heat of late July/Aug. The muck level has increased. We were able to dive down to about 25′ hitting the thermocline. Viz in this area got up to 15-20′. We had a great time diving the shallow dives without all the rubber and weight. Through the thurmocline, viz dropped to a few feet. We made one deep dive to 65′ hoping it would open up, but just got darker and darker.

   Temps: We dove in just trunks. The water within the first 20′ was upper 80′s to lower 90′s (Bathtub water).

   I have to give a huge plug for Denise and Dan at Jordan Marina. They are great hosts and definately take care of you.

   Check out our full report on the blog page!

   Snagel
2. ozarkdiver says:

   June 1, 2010 at 12:31 pm

   Dove Norfork on May 7th. Vis was about 12-15 ft., with the surface temp 64 degrees.
3. Denise Weber says:

   April 9, 2010 at 3:44 pm

   It’s that time of the year again!!! THE SPRING TURN IS HERE!!! Shout it from the rooftops…visibility is fabulous!

   Don’t let the yellow haze on the surface of the water scare you. The water is clear under the surface. Jerry had 50 feet of horizontal viz at 60 feet under water last week near the dam.

   Dan will be diving tomorrow afternoon and I’ll have more to report then!

   Lake levels are near normal.
4. piffle says:

   June 18, 2009 at 3:47 pm

   I made it back down to Norfork (Jordan Marina) this past Sunday and Monday, and managed to get in 3 dives between the storms that rolled through. I think I must bring the rain with me or something. I dove White Bluff, the dam, and the fish market. I had around 20′ vis and surface temp of 78 degrees. At 20′ there is a noticable thermocline, which below the temp dropped to about 70 degrees and the vis got little better. If you’re into the spearfishing thing, the season opened Monday and I did see some nice walleye and crappie being brought in. It is next on my scuba to do list. As always, the staff at Jordan Marina were very helpful and freindly.
5. snagel says:

   May 15, 2009 at 3:41 pm

   Original Post by Goose on ScubaToys

   I dove Norfork on Wednesday and Thursday (5/13/09 & 5/14/09). The vis is unbelieveable!!!!! 40-45 feet. We got a bunch of rain Wednesday night and it didn’t affect a thing.

   I highly recomend checking it out before something changes. Go talk with Dan and Dennise at Jordan. They’ll give you good info on the best places to go.
6. snagel says:

   May 10, 2009 at 4:40 am

   Original Post by Piffle on ScubaBoard:

   I dove the bluffs Saturday 5-9-09. Friday night Lake Norfork received 2″ of rain. Even after that, I still had 25′ vis on the surface and about 40′ from 25′ down. Any site that has steep walls on the bank is probably your best bet for now until things settle out again. The lake is still in good shape after the Friday storms and worth the trip. The folks at Jordan Marina will set you up with the directions to best spots and hook you up with anything else you might need for your dive trip.
7. Denise Weber says:

   May 7, 2009 at 7:22 pm

   Dive conditions are at their peak for this year!!!!

   Today Dan went out to shoot underwater video and the footage is spectacular! He went to the 1A Homesite (unmarked on maps), Dynamite Shack, Devil’s Backbone, Thumb Print Homesite, Hank’s Bluff, Dam Site, Bunch of Boulders and Fish Market.

   There’s one shot he got while diving Hank’s Bluff…he turned the camera toward the surface and the sun is sparkling through the water. He was at 80 feet!!!!

   This is a great time to dive the homesites! The visibility allows you to see the site in it’s entirety and it’s easier to see the layout of the home foundations, wells, fruit cellars, etc.

   Surface temp is 62 degrees. Visibility can be upwords of 50 feet. Yesterday, there was a particulate in the water (very light) for the first 40 feet and then very clear. Today, it seemed to have settled out.

   Water levels are just barely above normal (2 feet). We missed most of the rain that hit central Arkansas this past week.

   We’ve been seeing a great abundance of fish this year. I guess last year’s flood was good for something!
8. Denise Weber says:

   April 19, 2009 at 6:55 pm

   This is the moment we’ve been waiting for… after last year’s flood and poor visibility, we’ve been anxiously awaiting the spring 2009 “turn”. When the turn happens, visibility jumps up dramatically.

   Current surface temp as of 4/19/09 is 53 degrees and visibility is about 22 feet. Today was really windy with surface chop and the shoreline was stained, both from the wave action and runoff from last night’s rain. But the lake has definitely started to turn and clear up. Lake levels are right at normal.

   This time of year is a great time to dive some of the homesites on Norfork Lake. The extra visibility helps not only to locate them, but also to put a mental map together because you can see more of the site at a time.

   Other than this current rain, we expect to see visibility continue to climb to over 30 feet until the surface temps at Norfork hit about 68 (usually around Memorial Day).

   You can always check temperature and visibility for Norfork Lake at http://www.JordanMarina.com.
9. piffle says:

   April 13, 2009 at 3:49 pm

   Dove on 4/10/09 on some bluffs between Jordan Marina and the dam. Had 52 degrees and about 12 to 15 feet vis, which was’nt too bad considering the severe thunderstorms Thursday night. The folks at Jordan Marina great and very helpful as usual.
10. snagel says:

    August 5, 2008 at 12:49 am

    Submitted by Jordanmarinadc (ScubaBoard)

    Annual Treasure Hunt Aug. 16th

    ——————————————————————————–

    I thought you should know about a fun diving event coming up soon!!! The Norfork Lake Chamber of Commerce and Jordan Marina are having the Annual Treasure Hunt on August 16, 2008. It’s a benefit for the American Cancer Society.

    Last year 80 divers and their families participated and over $7000 in prizes were given out!

    Due to lake levels, the event will be held at the lake’s edge in the Jordan Campground. There will actually be some shade their for the families and friends of the divers! Tokens are hidden no deeper than 40 feet and you can get more air fills if you need them during the contest.

    There will be a scavenger hunt for the families while the diving is going on. This event is a lot of fun and I hope that you can make it!

    As for a current diving update…
    Norfork is even hotter now… the surface temp is 89! It feels GREAT to get under the thermoclime and cool off! Visibility is still good under the thermoclime, but not so good above it. The fish are still hanging in the submerged brush (the first 17 feet of shoreline.) They’ve got to move down soon or they are all going to overheat, but for now, it’s like shooting fish in a barrel!
11. Denise Weber says:

    July 27, 2008 at 3:34 am

    Woohoo!!! Visibility has improved!

    Last week I would have characterized the viz as “snot” with “scuba loogies” suspended in the first 25 feet of the water, but not anymore!!! All of that seems to have settled to the bottom, leaving the water much, much clearer than before.

    I dove the VW Van and had at least 15 feet of viz at 45 feet of depth. I even got 5 to 7 feet above the thermoclime. I would say it was roughly the same at the Rickety Wreck.

    The fish are all still shallow…just sweating in the 87 degree surface temps, but to move down is to move into the vast wide open and they are still avoiding it. To spear fish, drop into 30 feet of water. Swim up to the brushline at 22 feet and look up.
12. Denise Weber says:

    June 22, 2008 at 1:51 pm

    Surface temps at Norfork are 82 degrees. For the dive sites near Jordan Marina, visibility for the first 20 feet is muck diving (1 to 4 feet), but clears up about the time you get to 22 feet. The thermoclime is at 25 feet.

    This weekend, I dove the Gypsy, Rickety Wreck, School Bus, and Elephant Rocks. I got 8 to 10 feet or more under the thermoclime. Closer to the dam, divers have gotten 15-20 feet of visibility under the thermoclime in 25 to 35 feet of water.

    Water temps at 30 feet was 64 degrees on my computer. It was 62 degrees at 41 when we dove the School Bus. The bus still has a line running to it.

    If it’s sunny, ambient light penetrates to about 45 or 50 feet. At 60 feet it is dark!

    I’m a wuss when it comes to cold, so I’ll still be in my 7mm until mid July, but my students have been doing fine in two piece 3mm (farmer john and shorty) and a hood.

    As of 6/21/08 Norfork Lake is still 23 feet higher than normal. That means, unless you are diving a bluff, the first 20 feet of shoreline is covered in brush and trees. The only reason to go there is that’s where the fish are! Bring two knives — one to filet the fish and one to cut the fishing line that strung up in the branches you’re swimming through!

    Jordan Marina has a courtesy dock near shore so you don’t have to haul your dive gear a long way…just drive your car to the courtesy dock and bring your boat to it. See you at the lake!