So 12 adventurers headed off to far flung Philippines in search of seahorses and sunshine; we found the former but not the latter! On a very cold morning of 22nd Jan, we made our way down the M40 and headed for Gatwick. Some only made it with 30 minutes to…
Delayed departure and several sherbets later and, our jolly crew arrived in Sharm late in the evening one day last November, or was it early morning? We were excited with anticipation for our diving adventure, despite the time, and well into the wee hours were greeted by our friendly, but…
A dive trip to Lundy is always one of the highlights of the year, but this one was a bit special. On our arrival in Illfracombe, we stayed at the Dilkhusa Grand Hotel instead of the backpackers hostel, with lovely hot showers and comfy beds. At 9am on Saturday morning…
This is a strange report to write…we went diving but didn’t get wet! Well, our computers got wet but were left forgotten outside the chamber door and we can’t blame being narked! For those uninitiated, a 50m dry dive is as it sounds and is completed inside a hypobaric chamber—it…
With the dive crew assembled, campsite booked and trip briefing completed at the clubhouse, the stage was set for a sunny sortie to West Bay. Tuesday—Travel day came around, accompanied by a much-needed break in the heat wave. Hornet was towed from the boat yard by Andy Dale and Jon…
Thursday evening came and it was down the M5 to Ilfracombe! We arrived as the sun was setting, and parked about as far away from the pub as we could get! A warm wander around the town and eventually with the assistance of Google (other apps are available) we found…
The trip had been planned as an introduction to sea diving for us newly qualified divers, so appropriately, we arrived at Swanage Pier on Friday morning to find unexpectedly rough seas and no visibility. The first lesson in UK sea diving; you can’t depend on the weather. Not to be…
All the stars were in alignment this year on what has turned out to be the third consecutive Farne Islands trip: The sea was flat calm. The viz was wonderful, easily 5 to 6m, and the sunlight penetrating deep into the water illuminated the watery depths perfectly. In fact we…
As we are all aware, our instructors are overworked at the moment and have been putting in long hours in the pool, classroom and Stoney/Cromhall both catching up on the COVID backlog and getting our new trainees through their courses. So with this in mind Natalie, Denise and I organised…
As a novice diver with some 25 dives, the opportunity to experience my first liveaboard in the Red Sea was both daunting and exciting. Thanks to many far more experienced members, the group WhatsApp was filled with handy packing tips and squabbles on the importance of Celine Dion and cake!…
