More than a dozen members of the Okanagan Diving Club got together for some pre-Halloween pumpkin carving, but they did so in a place that only a group of passionate divers would consider: underwater.
The Okanagan Diving Club held its 38th annual underwater pumpkin carving event on Saturday afternoon in the shallows of Otter Bay in Vernon.
The event, co-hosted by Innerspace Water Sports, required participants to carve a pumpkin with a diving tool only while fully submerged in the water, with a trophy going to the best sub-aquatic jack-o鈥�-lantern as picked by the judges.
鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely challenging,鈥� said Brooke Astells as she attempted to warm up despite a frigid wind, minutes after emerging from the water with her pumpkin freshly carved. 鈥淚 think the smartest thing to do is cut holes in it so that it fills with water and sinks.鈥�
Astells has been diving for six years and was one of the event鈥檚 organizers. She鈥檚 been diving for six years and first learned how to dive tropically in Australia, but treats diving in Canada in October as a rite of passage.
鈥淚t鈥檚 that much more rewarding when you do it (while) bearing the cold,鈥� she said.
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鈥淭his time of year in Canada we usually dive in dry suits 鈥� today mine sprung a leak so it was filled with water, but I just kind of used it like a wet suit.鈥�
Despite the cold - and the awkward challenge of trying to keep a buoyant pumpkin submerged while carving it - Astells found the experience rather tranquil.
鈥淥nce you鈥檙e down there it鈥檚 pretty relaxing, and if you can get a good grip on it it鈥檚 just like carving a pumpkin above water really.鈥�
The event is mainly about having fun and working on a decidedly unique diving skill, but it鈥檚 also about cleaning up the bay.
鈥淭he main thing is just to have some fun carving a pumpkin underwater, but there鈥檚 also an environmental component where we鈥檒l go in and we鈥檒l pull out stuff to use in our display,鈥� explained Brad Houghton, president of the Okanagan Diving Club.
鈥淭here鈥檚 always lots of trash in the local lakes so any chance we can get to be eco-friendly and pull out some of that stuff when we find is great, and then we can use the trash to decorate the pumpkins.鈥�
Not knowing what decorations they鈥檒l have to work with until they find them means the parcicipants have to get creative when it comes time to jazz up their jack-o鈥�-lanterns for the judges.
鈥淚 found quite a few golf balls, a beer bottle and a half-decayed salmon,鈥� said Houghton. Despite the odd assortment of items, he was confident his carve would put him over the top.
鈥淚 have a good feeling about it.鈥�
