We had the best time! They are closed on Tuesday and Wednesday but when asked if they would mind opening for us and they did! My son completed his 50th dive while at Mermet and they made him a sign! This is my third time at Mermet Springs and I am always blown away at how lovely their facilities are, the items under the water are well maintained, and just overall friendliness of staff. Sidenote, we saw so many paddlefish! Go to the suspended Cessna that's where they love to hang out read more

See all

Instructors do a wonderful job of making first timers feel comfortable and both the gear and going into the water

Hadn't been there in a few years, but it was good to be back. What I liked: This must have the highest staff-to-diver ratio anywhere. I've always been well treated, the customer service philosophy is strong. The big plane is the largest I've seen underwater (there area of course several smaller ones in the quarry); The Paddlefish - sighting one of these makes for a surreal experience. What I don't care for: The visibility is generally bad during the summer. The training area takes up all the near-by shoreline, leaving non-students to the cold depths read more

I have been loyal and dedicated to Mermet Springs for over a year. I bought 99% of my gear there (over $8000 - I added my reciepts) I was always treated well, UNTIL I finished spending money. It was then that something changed. I felt as though I was being treated differently at that point. So after over a year of posting RAVE reviews and uplifting comments, I felt it necessary to pose a question to others in the dive community. On the facebook page, I querried basically if anyone else had any issues with Mermet. I stated that after I had bought all of my equipment, that I felt as though I was treated differently. That was basically IT. I had a couple replies saying that if I felt that way, I should talk to Glen (owner). So after 2 days, I took that post down on my own. I got a message from Glen asking me to call him shortly after, so I did. ( I thought it was going to be about a Drysuit issue I was having, but thats another story altogether ) It turns out, after talking about the drysuit for a bit, I told him how I felt, that some of his staff seemed rude now. He said that I had "ruffled alot of feathers out there with my post" and that if I wasnt happy, I should try other places where maybe I would "fit in better". (ALL over 1.5 hours away - I am local to Metropolis and why should I have to FIT IN anyway?) I told him that I could instead just come out, do my diving, and just leave everyone alone and they do the same to me. He kept driving me to other places, so I asked if he was BANNING me from the property, to which his reply was Yes, I think that is best for everyone. So after a year of loyalty and supporting HIS business, that is my reward. Like I done something wrong, instead of trying to get to the root of the problem. So this teaches his staff, dont worry if anyone complains, Ill just BAN them, no worries. There is a very obvious "clique" though, and if you arent in the in crowd, well...yeah..High School all over again. That being said, there are still ALOT of GREAT instructors, Its unfortunate that my "Punishment" was so severe for a very modest post. Just be aware. I am probably the ONLY one that was singled out like this, but its still NOT right. Not considering. I dont recommend anyone or anywhere that uses thier "powers of being owner" to vindictively punish someone just because I make them angry, but to each thier own. Good luck Divers. PS - It is my RIGHT to post reviews, good OR bad on any social media platform without recourse. (that was recourse btw) read more

This place is the "scuba-bomb"! I could not believe how well this quarry was laid out. There are all kinds of attractions to see under the water. The best part is the well marked lines taking you to each. It has a wide variety of depths, and very friendly (and huge) fish that love hotdogs! The paddle fish loved a little deeper, and colder water, but we were able to see a couple of these beautiful fish. The staff were very friendly, helpful and professional! They have rental equipment available for people like me that aren't equipped for cold water. Primitive campsites were only $5! If you are a scuba diver, and anywhere close to this place, it is a must dive!!!! read more

Mermet Springs - Scuba Diving Near Me - Belknap, Illinois

This is one of the best landlocked dive sites!! I got my open water certification here. Wouldn't have traded my dive group, or instructor for the world. This quarry plays music underwater, which is way cool in my book! Nothing like waiting on one of the underwater platforms for your instructor to get back from an exercise with one of the divers, while listening some of your favorite tunes! Not to mention I was surrounded by small fish most of the time, I thought it was so fascinating. They have so many submerged treasures! A sunken school bus, ambulance, motorcycle, cessnas, one long air plane that goes down 60 ft, and even a bath tub filled with bowling balls that you can juggle, & play catch with! It was such a fun time! As for the safety precautions, you ask? I have never felt so safe, the Mermet Springs staff, and my dive instructors were all about safety!! They do not play around when it comes to checking equipment, and following the rules, yet the whole experience is so fun, & exciting! So so cool! I recommend this dive site, and I also recommend diving with Y-Kiki! read more

Mermet Springs - The giant catfish! - Scuba Diving Near Me - Belknap, Illinois

See all

Mermet springs is a great place to go diving, especially if you are new to diving. They have great gear and it is in excellent shape. The staff is very nice and quite accommodating. Additionally, they have a great snack shop with excellent hot chocolate and pickles on a stick! They also have hamburgers and hotdogs. Sometimes it is hit or miss with visibility; on a clear Day you might be able to see 10 to 15 feet. However, when visibility isn't so good you're lucky if you can see more than 5 feet. Either way, it's always a great time. I would highly recommend you visit Mermet springs for an awesome diving experience. read more

Driving up to Mermet Springs, I was impressed by the number of signs along the way, pointing you in the right direction since it was in a remote location in Southern Illinois. We entered the gate and immediately knew we were somewhere special. Very well maintained grounds, pavilions and decorations to get you "ready to dive." Checking in was easy, especially since we had completed our liability forms online. We just had to show our c-cards and we were good to go. Since this was an impromptu trip, we were required to rent our equipment for the day. Mermet had a large storage area where they had ample gear to rent. Since we were diving Nitrox, they directed us to the Nitrox fill station where they analyzed our cylinders in front of us and we signed off on the mix before we ever left with our cylinders. Since we arrived early (and on a week day), we were able to nab a pavilion close to the platform. I really liked how they had guide lines labeled showing where you were headed. If you had looked at their map before arriving, it was a fool-proof was of not getting lost. The quarry is really large and we found the guide lines very helpful. Word of advice. Just know that there is a definite thermocline so be prepared for COLD water diving. If going below 20', you will definitely need hood, gloves and at least a 7mm wetsuit. Dry suit recommended, if you are certified. Also, plan on large crowds if diving in the weekends. We were told it is not unusual for 150-200 divers to come in on weekends. Also, they do not allow swimmers but will allow snorkeling for those who are non-divers. Also, they told me they are developing their freediving program. It had been about 14 years since I had been here - they've added several new things to see. We weren't lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the spoonbill fish or the albino catfish but they are there somewhere. Enjoy your COLD but interesting dive! read more

I'm going to give you my dive log entry. First off, I added a quick tip and a picture. Not because I absolutely love the place, because I love diving and don't think there's enough dive reviews on Yelp. So... viz was crap - 5-7 ft. I was told by others some days have 30 ft, alas, not a Saturday in June. It's a rock quarry, you been to one... well. What I will say is that they have made it a really nice quarry. Equipment rental, bathrooms, showers, changing rooms, covered pavilions, underwater sound system w/music. Also, they have lines going from one sunken thing to the next and they're all labeled "to 727/helicopter", etc. Top notch sunken treasures too. School bus, Cessna's, the 727, you get it. Worth one visit, 1-2 dives. Also, if you can't make it to FL, here's a decent local option. COLD (if you've ever dove a quarry), I had 10 mil on & was cold at 60' (though mostly face & fingers). Goes to 120' most of the stuff is 50' and above. read more

Mermet Springs - Scuba Diving Near Me - Belknap, Illinois

for a land locked dive site, this is about as good as it will get. they have everything here from camp sites, showers, air fills air and nitrox, food and a dive shop. there is plenty of parking and large covered staging stations that will accommodate at least 20 people each. the dive ranges from 15' down to 120', and depending on the time of year you go depends in the viz. if you head that way early summer the viz is not very good, mid to late September you will get about 35' of viz. once you get to about 60' the temp drops to a cool 48F, and you may need a flash light in some spots. you will experience a well planed and marked dive site, with trucks, fire truck, ambulance, lots of single engine plans and some suspended in the middle of nowhere. a full length Boeing 737 that will drop you down to 55'. a 1 man sub, school bus, coal car, and lots lots more. this quarry is well stocked with cat fish, and keep your eye out for the albino under the school bus. There is a large group of spoonbill that hang out along the wall on the other side of the site, and some of these are very large fish so bring your camera. If your lucky you will stumble across some fresh water jellyfish... yes you read that correctly, fresh water jellyfish. they are about the size of a quarter, and i have found them at about 30' along the wall. Mermet Springs makes a great weekend getaway for any diver of any experience, and accommodates for large groups. we have gone up there with groups as large as 65 people and as long as you book ahead there shouldn't be a problem. read more

I am a certified diver though I did not dive for this review. So why write? Well, I stayed with a group of divers for the weekend and saw and heard all they did, plus I watched all of the shore activity while they were diving. The underwater reviews above this one are pretty consistent with what I heard from the people I was with. It's a quarry, but about as good a dive site can be if it's a quarry. Above water? An excellent place. The staff, from welcome center, to equipment supply, repair techs, the folks as the surprisingly good snack bar to whomever was walking around just doing maintenance or whatever...all were very friendly and truly helpful. From solving forgotten gear issues to needing quick repairs, they were friendly, offered on the spot service and were genuinely committed to helping folks have a good time. I live in St. Louis and before spending the weekend at Mermet Springs was a little skeptical as to why my group had booked further away from town than some closer quarries for open water testing. After this weekend I would not hesitate to choose Mermet Springs over closer locations that offer fewer underwater attractions and such friendly and technically capable staff. read more