Learning from incidents, 2022 – 23
There’s lots we can learn from the incidents reported in the club during the 2022-23 diving season. Here are some of the key themes that came up, reported in the Diving Officer’s report to the 2023 AGM.
Stratford on Scapa 2023
Nine intrepid Stratford divers headed to the wilds of the Orkney Isles on the 10th September 2023 on another of Alastair’s brilliantly organised trips. We arrived in the historic harbour town of Stromness to be met by Emily Turton, skipper of Huskyan. Huskyan is a purpose built dive boat, designed…
Isle of Man
It was a gorgeous Thursday as ten club members squeezed themselves into two cars and set out for Liverpool, heading for a ferry bound for the Isle of Man. Despite the sunny weather we were all aware that the forecast for the weekend was not ideal, but determined to enjoy…
First sea dives in Swanage
This trip has been set up to introduce newly qualified Ocean Divers to diving in the sea. Having suffered a broken rib 12 weeks ago, I had only managed a few days at Stoney since qualifying, I was seriously doubting whether I should be going on this trip. I was…
Whit in West Bay
A little last minute but hey, that’s how the best plans start and boy did we pick a good weekend for it! A chance for Chris and Sophie to spread their coxing wings, for Johnny and I to buddy for the first time in UK seas and Angie to come…
Plymouth RHIB Trip May 2023
What a difference a couple of weeks can make! The Hornet trip to West Bay in April saw bad weather, cold winds and terrible viz make the diving very difficult. Fast forward to May and the picture had changed totally. We were spoiled with sun, flat calm waters and superb…
April West Bay Hornet Trip
With Hornet back in the water for the 2023 season 5 divers set off for West bay for some early season diving. The weather was not really ideal with constant rain in the days leading up to the trip leaving some fairly poor visibility. We did manage to get a…
New instructor
Congratulations to Simon Watkins, who has just passed his instructor exams to qualify as an Open Water Instructor. Simon has been an assistant instructor for a while and has been actively supporting the club’s training programme, proving himself to be a fantastic asset to the club. We’re delighted to have…
M2 with Skin Deep
I had a great day on the Dorset coast with my dive buddies Alastair, Steven & Chris. We headed down to Portland to dive HMS M2, a British WWI M-Class Submarine (90m long) which sank in 1932, all hands lost. The submarine had been converted into an aircraft carrier and…
Photography competition 2023
The annual club photography competition is back! This year’s entries covered the three years since the last competition was held and drew some amazing entries. There were prizes for each of ten categories, and an overall “People’s choice” prize voted for on the night. In addition, our resident professional photographer,…