While Tennessee offers some excellent lake diving and great quarries too, there's a well-known site here that attracts divers from surrounding states all year round. Located on sixty beautiful wooded acres in the heart of the Smoky Mountains foothills, this inland dive resort is one you've just got to see to believe. Pack your kit and go for a little road trip; this famous Loch is nowhere near Scotland - instead, it's conveniently located just off Interstate 75, between Chattanooga and Knoxville.
Loch Low Minn Features and Attractions
After a friendly greeting and a quick stop to sign waivers and take care of air fills, rent or buy any gear that might have been forgotten at home, and a last stop at the restroom, divers can enjoy a great staging area that borders the walk-in entry area. There's a wooden dock for deep entry, with benches designed to simulate a boat's deck. Under the dock, there is a hang bar at a depth of 15 feet for even better training. Other training aids include suspended platforms at 25 feet, plus a swim-through culvert 3 feet in diameter and 16 feet long, along with a five-legged navigational course with a 100 foot line for measuring kick cycles, plus, a buoyancy course with eight floats 3 feet off the bottom, at a depth of 30 feet.
Attractions include sculptures such as a Michelangelo's David, a deer, a donkey, a 5 foot alligator, and sea horses; plus there's a frog sculpture at a depth of 20 feet, evidently hiding from the Loch Ness Monster that hovers from one of the quarry's walls (we'll let you find it!) The boulder hole was formed by massive rocks smashing down from the quarry walls while it was still active, and the trench is the site's deepest area, at 74 feet. In the trench, you'll find a toilet that offers a good opportunity to take those all-important blackmail photos of your buddy while the catfish, bluegill, and bass look on.
The visibility at Loch Low Minn is excellent, often reaching 40 feet in summer, and 60 feet during the winter; this is due to the solid limestone that filters the water before it gets to the lake. Temperatures vary, but during the winter, you'll find cold water, and in the summer, you'll enjoy more pleasant temperatures averaging 75 degrees Fahrenheit or so. There is a 10 degree thermocline at a depth of about 35 feet.
Topside, you'll find hot showers, a rinse sink, and flush toilets in the bath house, which does offer separate facilities for men and women; in addition, there is an open air grill, plus a pool and spa non-diving guests are welcome to enjoy. Air fills and Nitrox are available, and the resort offers a number of events throughout the year, including underwater pumpkin carving at Halloween, treasure hunts, campouts, and much more.
When you dive at Loch Low Minn, you'll be treated as a guest, rather than as just another customer; this is one thing everyone who visits notices. Since 2006, the resort has been home to a thriving community of paddlefish - just one more reason to come see why this is one of the best places to dive in Tennessee.