Divers find trash, treasure in area waters

On 06/12/2009
In Miscellaneous
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By Denise Perry Donavin - Southbend Tribune

Don McAlhany has a unique way of spending New Year's Eve: scuba diving under ice in Lake Michigan or the St. Joseph River.

This year will mark his 31st in scuba gear, as he joins members of the local Michigan Underwater Divers (M.U.D.). McAlhany is the president of M.U.D. — an organization of local scuba divers who explore the rivers and lakes of southwest Michigan.

M. U. D., an appropriate acronym, explains the diver, since mud is the venue the divers face most often.

Local lakes and rivers are not the clear blue of the Caribbean that many divers envision. And in that mud, the divers have found plenty of trash and treasures — from anchors and engines to cash registers and coins, McAlhany said.