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Why don’t Diving Rules apply in the UK?
First in a new series of Blog’s from The Fifth Point’s Nic Emery… we are very excited to welcome Nic to the Scubaverse Blog Team!
I’m walking my divers down to the jetty. The path from the centre is framed by pristine rainforest enveloping the steep mountains to one side, and the golden sands with crystal clear waters lapping against it on the other. We’re chatting away about the day ahead, and what we can expect to see in the tropical waters of the South China Sea.
Hop on the boat and during the lazy hour or so drive we’re accompanied by dolphins playing on the bow wave and flying fish taking advantage of the wake.
My team of Divemasters spring up as we approach the first site and gather the divers for their briefing. Among the usual information on entry and exit procedures, signal recaps and the like, is the “don’t take, don’t touch, don’t tease” and “take only memories, leave only bubbles” spiel. It’s almost a cliché, the divers have heard it that many times. Obviously, they’re not going to do that – they’re not morons!
Flash forward a couple of weeks and the divers have returned home. They’re back ready to brave the cold waters of the UK. Suited and booted in what seems like a ton of lead compared to their holiday, they hit the water refreshed by the crispness of the North Sea. Off they go on their dive… AND IT’S A BL**DY FREE FOR ALL!
Lobsters are ragged from their holes and stuffed into goody bags alongside bullets and chunks of metal and anything that moves on a wreck. They’re clambouring over the boulders and not paying any regard to their buoyancy as they dump themselves down into what appears to be an empty sandy patch, lifting a cloud of silt into the water column.
All those good “warm water” habits have, for some inexplicable reason, been completely forgotten about. How come they don’t apply in the UK? If you were a diver in the tropics and had seen that kind of behaviour underwater, I’m pretty sure you’d have something to say about it back on the boat. But in the UK, it’s rarely challenged. In fact, more often than not, it’s embraced!
The trouble seems to lie with the general perception of cold water. It’s freezing therefore nothing could possibly live down there! It must be a pretty barren place and if there IS any life, it must be hard as nails to survive all that. The waves can be huge, so the creatures must be used to a good bashing around. That environment must be able to take whatever you throw at it.
Those who have not descended beneath the surface of the North Sea have never witnessed the beauty of the marine life that lives down there. You can understand why they’d think about the North Sea in that way. But UK divers have no excuse. They’ve seen it first-hand yet still have this belief that our cold oceans are sturdy so those rules of “no touch, no take” need not apply.
Well, I’m here to say that they ABSOLUTELY DO. We were a proud Green Fins member when we worked in the South China Sea. We reminded our divers before every single dive of the code of conduct we expected them to follow.
Take a look and tell me, with the exception of “no gloves”, which rules do not apply to UK diving and why?
Our cold-water habitats are just as fragile as any warm water coral reef. We have an abundance of soft coral and delicate anemones living on our rocky reefs that need the same care and attention as their tropical relatives. Holding on to rocks and kelp for stability (in the majority of circumstances) demonstrates an apathetic attitude towards using our buoyancy skills to their full. Even as an experienced diver, I still practise at every opportunity I get. Challenging myself to the perfect trimmed out hover while trying to accomplish some tricky underwater task. I encourage my students to do the same, performing course skills neutrally buoyant wherever possible.
I’m proud to say that my dive centre in the UK still follows the “no touch, no take” mantra that we were so used to in the tropics. Our only exception is when we come across some marine debris, which we absolutely remove and report our findings to Project AWARE.
Use and practise your buoyancy skills on every dive. Don’t hold on to anything unless it’s the absolute last resort. Think before you remove something living from the water – are you really going to eat it or will it just end up in the bin? Ask yourself what you’re going to do with that artefact you want to take from the wreck – is it just going to sit in your garage?
Protect What You Love.
Visit www.fifthpointdiving.com for more.
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
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More information available on www.scubapro.com.
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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