2023 Shipwrecks

SHIPWRECKS/2023 The Niagara Divers’ Association will present its 29th Annual Shipwrecks Symposium, “Shipwrecks/2023” on Saturday, April 1, 2023. This year we are excited to be back in person location at Centennial High School, 240 Thorold Road, Welland, Ontario. As in the past, we have plans for numerous multimedia presentations by both world renowned and local …

Master of Ceremonies One of Tom’s favourite phrases is, “The more I learn, the more I learn how little I know,” from Socrates, which he finds translates perfectly into Great Lakes diving. “The more I dive the more I realize there’s more out there to discover than I ever imagined,” he said recently. Drawing on …

Jill Heinerth, Explorer-in-Residence, The Royal Canadian Geographical Society More people have walked on the moon than visited many of the places Jill Heinerth has explored on Earth. From the most dangerous technical dives deep inside underwater caves to searching for never-before-seen ecosystems inside giant Antarctic icebergs, Heinerth’s curiosity and passion for our watery planet is …

John Ratcliffe studied archaeology at Wilfrid Laurier University, and maritime archaeology at East Carolina University. Prior to joining the Parks Canada Underwater Archaeology Team (UAT) in 2021, he worked at Library and Archives Canada. John has been part of UAT field projects in Lake Superior, Labrador, and the Arctic. Closer to home, he has been …

Ken Merryman is past president and founding member of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Preservation Society.  He is a retired computer engineer and a veteran speaker at scuba shows around the Great Lakes.  Ken has been an avid Great Lakes shipwreck hunter and diver for 50 plus years and operated a scuba diving charter service for …

The Stayers, Explorer Club Fellows and Boston Sea Rovers Associate Members, are well-known underwater filmmakers dedicated to sharing shipwrecks, animal behavior, and remote dive destinations around the world. Jim & Pat have discovered several shipwrecks, co-authored 3 books, produced hundreds of multimedia presentations, and their footage has appeared on numerous major networks worldwide.  They have …

2023 marks his 53rd year diving, with his initial training with the Aqua Knights of Hamilton, in 1970. He is a former ACUC,CMAS,DAN and PADI MSDT Instructor. He has been an active member of the Ontario Marine Heritage Committee(OMHC), participating in numerous archaeological programs with this group. An avid underwater photographer, his award winning photographs …