Portland Weekend 7th & 8th May 2011

Saturday was bright and sunny. The original plan was to base ourselves in Kimmeridge but due to high winds the plan was switched to Portland Harbour.

Despite an early boat launch everyone was raring to go, with the boat launched and a quick trip out to the location of the landing craft within Portland harbour. Shotted, the first divers in were Cheryl B & Wayne and Caz & Alex T. Alex and Caz managed to find the landing craft, Cheryl B and Wayne managed the lowest viz dive ever!!

Second wave to the landing craft saw James, Phil and Paula  and Eammon & Cheryl L dropped in with better results.

The afternoon session saw us take a long trip (14nm) to a old club favourite the Blackhawk, After a perfect shot drop that hit the wreck, all divers had fantastic viz and lots of life.

Caz Getting Wet

The second wave to the Blackhawk missed the mark slightly with some divers enjoying a drift with 3-5M viz, but sadly the weather deteriorated so the trip back to Portland harbour was rather wet.

Saturday evening continued to be wet, with most of the divers drifting off to the pub, or to stay in the caravans and plan the next days diving, but Alex T, James and Wayne, with Caz as hardy surface cover (it was still raining), took a trip off to Chesil cove for a night dive. 3-5M viz and lots of animated night life made the dive one of the best this year, although getting out over the shingle bank was a bit of a struggle. 

A drift

Sunday morning was planned as drift dive outside the harbour, in fact it was overlooked by the caravan site.  Divers had a variety of experiences, with fast and slow drifts and some wildlife.

Sunday afternoon saw two waves out to the dredger, a popular spot outside Portland harbour, but some divers managed to drop into HMS seabed, although James managed to bag some scallops. Cheryl B and Simon managed to find a cuttlefish laying eggs.

All in all the weekend trip to Portland was a great success, allowing divers of all abilities the chance to expand their experiences and enjoy what Britain’s undersea work has to offer.

Many thanks to Chez for organising the trip and to Simon and James for Coxing, and of course all the divers who joined us.

1st dive of the year - Stoney Cove

Wayne, Caz, Paula and Alex E decided to brave the winter cold and venture up to Stoney Cove for the first dive of 2011.




First divers in were Wayne and Alex E, loaded up with video and still cameras and hoping to catch a glimpse of Nessie and the mysteries of the deep-or whatever was still swimming around in the 6° C water. Viz was good, but the water was quiet apart from a single solitary perch.

Next up were Paula and Caz, Paula only just managing to dive as she had managed to forget her regs! But Alex E loaned his and all was well. Both divers reappeared after about 25 min grinning from ear to ear. They had found Nessie and Paula had decided to try riding him-not a good idea with a semi-extinct sea monster. Still she came back so Nessie must have been in a good mood.

The surface interval passed quickly, all divers availing themselves of the excellent cuisine at Stoney Cove (burger and chips tea and hot chocolate), as well as the excellent facilities at the Stoney Cove shop.

First dive of the afternoon was Wayne and Paula, Wayne sporting a brand-new pair of 5 mm gloves, with a plot in off the bus stop, a quick whizz around the Viscount, a bimbo over to the Nautilus, and then the find of the day Nessie was hiding from the cold in the arches under the pub.

Caz and Alex E finished off the diving day visiting the Viscount and the Nautilus.

An excellent day was had by all. Winter diving is not as cold as you think, and with excellent viz (10M) and plent of space to park, it was a great day.