For those that have done scuba diving in fresh water lakes I am curious how far light penetrates through the water.

Lets say there is 3' visibility at the waters surface with the sun directly over head, how far do you have to go down before there is no light penetration at all? I am sure with each foot less and less light is able to penetrate through the water. So at 30' is there any light penetration at all? Is it pitch black down there? Is there maybe 10% light penetration?

About 15 years ago, a man fell out of his boat at Alan Henry and drowned. The authorities didn't find his body immediately so a dive team was sent down. They looked for the body for about 6 months until they finally found it. This is when Alan Henry was super clear. Anyway, I was talking to one of the divers, and asked him about the search and other stuff (how bass were relating to cover). Eventually, he told me they were diving at night as much as in the daytime, and I asked him about seeing in the dark and why not just dive when the sun was up. He said after about 25 foot it was not darker at night than it was during the daytime. I have no confirmation or first-hand knowledge, but that is what he told me.

Cool addition to the story: I actually met him in a tackle store because he was asking me questions about baits. He had never bass fished before but said he was seeing so many huge bass that he wanted to start fishing. One of the first things he asked me was why all the guys in bass boats fishing around where he was diving where throwing their lures at the bank. He said "all the big fish are out in deeper water on the other side of all the boats............."

At 20 foot at PK you can see about 3 foot without a good light. Only place I’ve ever dove. I’m sure that lakes like Amistad are much better though.

Lewisville I can go without a light to about 18-20'. Ray Bob I have been to 17' without a light. Grapevine I needed a light at 40'. Clear Springs scuba park, I never used a light in the day time to 50'.

Canyon Lake is nice and clear at 45' and light penetration I would guess is 75%.
Same at PK. We took our dive test out there @ 50'. It was sunny, the water was clear and easy to see.

I took the course, got the certification and dove just another several times, all in the ocean in California.
Same thing there though. You could see at 40' feet just fine.

I have been told 200' in the blue ocean. Lakes have a lot more silt, so no clue there. Probably depends on each particular body of water. I do know I have a camera/aquaview I can drop into 25' in the daytime and it was always light on the brushpiles at the bottom on several local DFW lakes.

Begs the question............What about color?
I had a guide once who said after about 10 feet, all that
matters is "light" or "dark"

??

Water clarity will play a key role in how deep color will fade but this is a good illustration of how dramatic colors fade based on light penetration. This is the video that prompted me to start this thread.

That was a great video. I'd like to see that same thing done in a Freshwater Lake.