Beneath the Surface

Three River Lives and the Birth of the Thousand Islands Divers Alliance

On certain summer mornings in the Thousand Islands, the River feels suspended in time.

Light slides across the surface in silver ribbons. The islands sit quiet and watchful. A freighter moves upriver with patient inevitability. From shore, it is motion and shimmer — wind, water, sky.

Slip beneath the surface, and everything changes.

Sound softens. Light fractures into pale green shafts. Granite shelves fall away. Schools of bass hover in the current. A century-old hull rests in cold clarity, ribs intact, timbers softened but not surrendered. Down there, history does not feel distant. It feels present.

For the founders of the Thousand Islands Divers Alliance (TIDA), that underwater world is not hidden. It is familiar — and worth protecting.

Formed in late 2025, TIDA grew from informal cleanup dives and conversations among local divers into an organized nonprofit focused on environmental stewardship, diver safety, and preservation of the River’s maritime heritage. What began as small efforts to remove debris and document conditions evolved into a larger question: how can divers serve the River in a coordinated, lasting way?

At the center of the Alliance are three people whose lives have long revolved around the St. Lawrence.

A Summer River

Todd Keister’s connection to the Thousand Islands began in childhood summers. Growing up in Binghamton, NY, he returned here year after year to fish, boat, and water ski. The River became part of the rhythm of family life.

After a 30-year career in law enforcement — retiring as a New York State Police captain — Todd returned to the River in a new way: as a diver.

He began diving in 2018. Shipwrecks drew him in first. A lifelong student of history and author of several books and articles, he saw in the River’s wrecks more than steel and timber. Vessels like the Islander and the Keystorm are chapters of a regional story — commerce, weather, ambition, and the River’s quiet insistence on respect.

Underwater, history is not behind glass. It rests in clear water, accessible to anyone willing to descend.

As his training progressed and he became a scuba instructor, Todd began to imagine something more organized. Divers were already informally cleaning sites and keeping watch. What if that work were coordinated? What if municipalities partnered with divers to improve access and safety while protecting historic wrecks?

The idea for TIDA began there — practical, local, and rooted in stewardship rather than spectacle.

A River Native

If Todd’s connection to the River is shaped by long summers, Miranda Nelson’s is shaped by permanence. Born and raised in Clayton, NY, she never left.

A graduate of Thousand Islands Central School District, she earned her bachelor’s degree in childhood education from Elmira College and a master’s in curriculum and instruction from SUNY Potsdam. Since 2016 she has taught at Guardino Elementary. She also coaches the district’s Varsity Swim and serves as pool director for the Clayton Pool.

Water has always defined her days. Swimming is more than recreation; it is rhythm. She spends time ship watching, studying freighters as they pass, and noticing how the River shifts from glassy calm to wind-driven chop with the change of a front. She knows it in all seasons.

She began scuba diving in 2022, quickly earning her open water, advanced, and rescue certifications. Exploring the River from below revealed a landscape she had never fully seen — rock ledges sculpted by current, shifting light, the delicate balance of habitat beneath familiar shorelines.

When asked to help co-found TIDA, she did not hesitate.

For Miranda, improving diver safety and enhancing access are extensions of care for the place that shaped her childhood and now shapes her students’ lives. Stewardship is not abstract; it is local and generational. Protecting the River means ensuring that future swimmers, boaters, and divers experience the same beauty she grew up with.

The Connector

Matt McCullouch’s story bridges familiarity and discovery.

A lifelong resident of the Thousand Islands region, Matt grew up surrounded by the Indian River Lakes and the St. Lawrence. Water was simply part of life. He became a certified diver in 2016 while in Cozumel and, by his own account, was hooked immediately.

Since then, he has become an expert-level diver and an active leader in the Clayton Dive Club, the region’s longest-standing scuba association, serving in a leadership role as the organization’s secretary. That experience positioned him naturally as Community Outreach Coordinator for TIDA.

As a boat owner who spends time on the water with his wife and daughter — often aboard what he affectionately calls his “big ugly boat, Chet” — he understands both perspectives. He knows the rhythm of boat traffic and the visibility of dive flags. He understands that education and awareness benefit everyone who uses the River.

For him, the Alliance is about connection: creating a network where local divers can collaborate, share information, promote safe practices, and protect the River’s ecosystem and maritime history together.

Small Steps, Lasting Impact

TIDA’s work has already begun to take visible shape.

With approval from the Villages of Clayton and Alexandria Bay, diver-down awareness signage will be installed at public docks and boat launches — simple measures intended to reduce conflict between boaters and divers. The Alliance is also collaborating with Alexandria Bay officials on improvements to shore access at the historic wreck of the Islander, seeking to enhance safety while preserving the character of the site.

These efforts are measured rather than dramatic, rooted in patience, respect, and incremental progress. TIDA’s approach reflects that understanding: improve access thoughtfully, educate consistently, partner locally.

Divers occupy a unique vantage point. They see what most never do — fishing line caught in timber, invasive mussels colonizing metal, subtle changes in habitat over time. In many ways, they serve as quiet witnesses to the River’s health.

Through organized cleanups, outreach, and collaboration, TIDA seeks to turn that witness into stewardship.

The Thousand Islands have always been defined by water. Granite may rise above it and cottages may line it, but the River is the constant.

What the Thousand Islands Divers Alliance offers is a reminder that the story does not end at the shoreline. Beneath every calm surface lies a layered world of ecology and history.

Todd sees a submerged archive worth preserving.
Miranda sees a home whose beauty deepens with understanding. Matt sees a community strengthened when it works together.

On a clear day, if you watch closely offshore, you may see a thin stream of bubbles rising — a quiet sign that someone is below, tending to what most of us never see. The River keeps its secrets. But it also invites care.

And sometimes that care begins with three people who love it enough to go beneath the current — and come back determined to protect what lies there.

You can learn more about TIDA at their website www.tidivers.org.

By Todd Keister

Todd Keister is a NAUI, and SSI-certified scuba instructor, and a retired New York State Police commander with 30 years of service. He brings decades of leadership experience to TIDA’s mission of underwater stewardship and diver safety in the Thousand Islands region. ​Todd has also worked as an adjunct college professor and author, with published work in law enforcement, history, and public policy. His passion for diving, conservation, and community service drives his commitment to protecting the St. Lawrence River for future generations.