Exploring the depths of Lake Tahoe

5/09 tahoe mt. news unedited

By Kathryn Reed

Only time will reveal whether scientist Scott Cassell and his 14-member exploratory team end their month-long exploration of the depths of Lake Tahoe by uttering something like, “The world isn't ready for what was down there.”
Supposedly that’s what famed undersea voyager Jacques Cousteau said after his visit here. But considering no definitive proof has come forward proving Cousteau was in the emerald water, the validity of his quote is even more suspect.
Nonetheless, conspiracy theorists were overheard jibber-jabbering about what the Undersea Voyager Project may uncover as Lake Tahoe is studied like it never has been.
Cassell and company launched the bright yellow, odd looking pontoon-like, bubble vessel from Tahoe Keys Marina on April 30 with the intent of studying the seven fault lines on the floor of the Lake, the ecosystem, sunken ships, water quality issues, soil toxicity and pollution.
After his first dive of 50 feet, Cassell remarked he was able to see the surface. The vessel can go down about 150 deep. The Lake is 1,645 feet deep, with an average depth of 989 feet. Scuba divers can make it about 200 feet down. With a remotely operated vehicle, the scientific team will be able to reach the bottom.
Third-graders from Lake Tahoe School in Incline were captivated by the team in their orange jumpsuits.
“I might just have found a job for when I grow-up – to drive a submarine,” student Sadie Hart said as the vessel puttered out of the marina.
Classmate Sarina Baratta said her class has been learning about the dangers of zebra mussels and algae stuck to the bottom of boats.
“It’s not going to be a pure Lake anymore if we don’t learn to stop it,” Sarina said.
One thing that is supposed to be beneath the surface is the stonefly. That is something the crew may uncover. Fly fishermen like to use manmade ones.
Something else to study is the underwater forest off Kiva Beach. At the end of the month when the gang heads to Fallen Leaf Lake, the emphasis there will be on the submerged trees.
Jim Kleppe, a UNR professor who lives at Fallen Leaf Lake, is credited with discovering the underwater forest there.
By taking a core sample of a tree it is said historic weather patterns can be revealed. Plus, studying the trees will provide geological history about the basin.
Theories abound whether Coustean, assuming he said the above quote, was talking about some sort of undersea monster or floating bodies. Legend has it the mob dumped bodies in the Lake on a regular basis. Chinese laborers also were supposedly cast into the freezing water.
Even though the Lake preserves bodies fairly well, over time human tissue even in Lake Tahoe would decompose and fish would gnaw away most components. Adipocere could occur. That is when a brown fatty, wax-like substance forms on dead animal tissues in response to moisture. This means it is possible parts of long discarded human remains could exist in Lake Tahoe.
Cassell will release preliminary findings from his dives at a May 29 seminar at Lake Tahoe Community College. He’s working with the Scripps Institute, which will assist in analyzing the data he collects.
Deadlines got in the way of reporting on his May 7 talk at the Tahoe Maritime Museum in Homewood.
Cassell is scheduled to return to Lake Tahoe in October with a different submarine. For more info, go to www.underseavoyager.org.