I went on the July 27th tour and it was quite an experience. I arrived early for the 1:30pm meeting time and saw a few people milling about at the meeting point. I thought I was in on something unique, but within a half hour the place was packed with people.

The organizers came around with waivers for us to sign and collected our $15 (exact change). They seemed a bit unorganized and we didn’t begin going into the tunnel until about 2:15pm. Arriving early meant more time down in the tunnel, but being late didn’t seem to be a problem.

The entrance to the tunnel is a manhole cover in the middle of busy Atlantic Ave. It was exciting to crawl down into the street. They brought us down in groups of 10 to keep the middle of the intersection clear.

As I was about to crawl in, the police showed up to find out what this huge group of people were up to. After talking to the organizers, the two officers followed me down into the tunnel.

We had to wait for everyone to make it into the tunnel for the tour to begin so we had some time to chat with Bob Diamond who discovered the tunnel, and snap some pictures of really old graffiti. Inside the tunnel it is very cool and comfortable, but you will need good shoes (you’ll be standing a lot), a flashlight (it’s dark), and a camera (bring one). There was one bench to sit on, so grab a seat if you are one of the first people in.

The tour takes about 3 hours, so be prepared to listen to a lot of history. This is a sample of Bob explaining how the tunnel was built.

The vents he mentions in the video. The black stuff is the soot from the old steam locomotives.

Coming back out of the tunnel was my favorite part. People were gathered around the manhole cover, thinking that something bad had happened down in the subway tunnels. As I was walking away a very concerned woman approached me and asked what happened. When I told her about the subway tunnel tour, she seemed confused and went to the person behind me and asked what happened.

If you are interested in going on the tour, check out the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association events schedule. To see all of my pictures of the tunnel go to flickr.

Tunnel Tour Information

Date: August 10th
Time: 1:30pm
Cost: $15
Bring: Comfortable shoes, flashlight, camera, water/snacks
Call 718-941-3160 for reservations

Post from: Michael Doig

Atlantic Avenue Brooklyn, NY – World’s Oldest Subway Tunnel

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Abandonded Warehouse in Montreal Canada 2005

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Rockaway Beach Brooklyn, NY

The island itself was beautiful, great geology and wildlife. They are repopulating the island with Bald Eagles and I was lucky enough to see one, however my pictures came out blurry. Several other people reported seeing the Island Fox and a Spotted Skunk. If you are interested in making it out to the Channel Islands, visit the Island Packers website for more information.

Post from: Michael Doig

Flickr Photoset from Santa Cruz Island California

1) Scorpion Fish – Can you spot the fish? These guys are the masters of camouflage, which helps them gulp up an unsuspecting fish when it passes by. This fish also has a beautiful orange pattern on the back of its pectoral fins that announces to potential predators that they are poisonous.

Technorati Tags: fish, Key Largo, SCUBA, travel, video

2) Minnow Ball – This huge school of tiny fish was so dense you couldn’t see what was in front of you. There must have been millions of these tiny guys. These fish travel in such huge numbers to protect themselves from predators, and all around this huge ball of fish were tons of large fish like groupers, snappers, and jacks.

3) Crustaceans – Shrimp, crabs and lobsters were plentiful and lobster season started while we were in Key Largo. I saw several barber pole shrimp, loads of lobsters, a few crabs, and a tiny blue shrimp that was living in an anemone.

4) Fish & Eels – I came across loads of different types of fish. Everything from this spotted drum to squirrel-fish and grunts. Even a few morays. The morays look evil with the opening and closing of their mouths, but they have to do it in order to breathe.

5) Assorted Invertebrates – I was lucky enough to cross paths with several nudibranchs, some elkhorn coral and a cool bristle fireworm. The reason it is called a fireworm is because if you rub against the bristles it causes a burning sensation.

If you ever get a chance to make it to Key Largo and go diving I highly recommend it. The town itself is pretty small and quiet, but the diving more than made up for it. Check out the rest of my photos at http://flickr.com/photos/michaeldoig/

Post from: Michael Doig

Key Largo, FL – An Underwater SCUBA Adventure

Technorati Tags: Los Angeles, New York, road trip, driving

Post from: Michael Doig

Los Angeles to New York or Driving Across America