Diving Lake Hydra, the Former Dutch Springs Quarry

Lake Hydra, formerly known as Dutch Springs, reopened in 2024 for training and certification dives.

Courtesy Ken Kraft

When most divers dream of getting their open-water certification, I’m willing to bet that Pennsylvania doesn’t make it onto the vision board. After all, who prefers a chance of snow over tropical reefs, soft sand, and fresh-cut pineapple waiting on the dive boat?

But I wouldn’t change a thing about my open-water certification dives on a chilly November weekend in 2021 at the former Dutch Springs in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania—a popular freshwater dive spot. I had a staring contest with a curious bass hoping for a snack, practiced frog kicks around a submerged plane and peered through the windows of a sunken school bus. My dive buddy and I blew a fuse in our hotel room warming up our wet gear with a hair dryer before our second day of diving, which just made us more eager to get out the door and into the water.

Courtesy Ken Kraft

Saving a Beloved Dive Site—And Community

My group was one of the last to dive there before the beloved former quarry was sold and closed for a few years. Its future was uncertain, and it’s hard to overstate the effect the closing had on both divers and local businesses who relied on groups like mine to stay at local hotels, dine at local restaurants and shop at local establishments. There were petitions being circulated to save Dutch Springs, including one that received over 7,000 signatures.

Thanks to local divers Ken Kraft and Jim Folk, along with cooperation from the new owners, the dive site reopened as Lake Hydra in 2024—much to the appreciation of the dive community in the Northeast and along the Atlantic coast. Today, the lake is open to groups of students diving with certified and insured instructors, organizations and dive professionals. It’s used for training, certifications and instructor exams.

“I decided to try and save the lake for my friend and partner, Jim Folk of Atlantis Aquatics,” says Kraft, the CEO of Lake Hydra, who has been diving since the 1980s. “While talking to others in the dive community, they were all at a loss of what they would do without this site being available for their classes. I said, ‘Hold on, let me see what I can do to save the lake for diving in the Northeast,’ and I was able to get in touch with the proper people and set it in motion.”

Related Reading: Diving Crusty's Quarry, Pennsylvania

Sunken features at Lake Hydra include a Sikorsky S-56 helicopter, a Cessna airplane, and an old pump house.

Courtesy Ken Kraft

What to See at Lake Hydra

Beneath the surface, divers utilize underwater platforms to practice buoyancy and skills like mask removal and replacement. They can encounter koi feeding on the bottom of the lake and many other freshwater fish. Dutch Springs’ unique sunken features remain in the new park for divers to explore, including a Sikorsky S-56 helicopter, a Cessna airplane and a boat named The Minnow. An old pump house also lies in a part of the lake called The Cove, a relic of the lake’s quarry days. This is a favorite dive spot of Folk’s that he calls “the superstructure.”

“That is the only pump house and structure that brought the pipes up to the top and over to the creek via the pumps,” says Folk, director of Atlantis Aquatics Inc. and CFO of Lake Hydra. “It's a nice dive, especially when the sun is shining through all the beams and such to swim around.”

Courtesy Ken Kraft

For the best visibility, Folk recommends visiting in spring and early summer.

“If you don't mind the chill, the spring has amazing vis,” he says. “We have usually 50-plus feet all around the lake.”

In mid-July, algae starts to form on the lake and sticks around until about mid-September. Folk’s favorite time to dive Lake Hydra is in the fall, when the weather is cooler and the water is still warm.

“We usually have finished our algae bloom by then and it's pretty clear,” he says.

Related Reading: Great Quarry Diving in the Midwest

join padi club illustration of eagle ray and the cover of scuba diving magazine

Improvements Made Since Opening

One of the changes that came with opening the site as Lake Hydra is the implementation of two entrances—one on the east side of the lake and one on the west. There’s parking on both sides, and the west entrance features a heated and air-conditioned bathhouse with showers and changing areas.

“We also have a racecar that will be put into the lake soon,” Folk says. “More projects are planned, from renewing platforms [to adding] new docks. It's a slow process, but it’s coming along and changing all the time.”

One thing that hasn’t changed: the strong community drawn to diving in this neck of the woods. For Folk and Kraft, the “divers of the future” are top of mind as they continue to innovate and develop the area to suit groups of students and instructors and support local businesses.

“We look forward to diving being taught here for many years to come,” says Kraft.

Lake Hydra Conditions

Depth: Reaches nearly 100 feet

Temp: Varies, reaching the 70s in the warmer months and dipping when the Northeastern cold sets in

Visibility: Up to 50+ feet in springtime; down to 5 feet during late-summer algal blooms

Who Can Dive Lake Hydra?

Lake Hydra is currently open to student groups diving under the supervision of certified, insured instructors. Recreational divers looking to explore the lake or sharpen their skills are encouraged to contact their local dive center or Rent a Dive Pro. Insured dive professionals are welcome at Lake Hydra anytime, provided they dive with a buddy.

When to Visit

To join a supervised dive, simply get in touch with your local dive center. Diving is available April through November. Please note that a separate Lake Hydra entrance ticket is required and can be purchased anytime up to the day before your visit.

Visit in the fall to avoid the annual algae bloom and experience the best vis.