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Diving
around the
Pembrokeshire Coastline
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As
a club based in South Wales we are very
fortunate to live close enough to dive around
the Pembrokeshire Coast, the only coastal
national park in the UK and an area of "outstanding
natural beauty" which also incorporates
the Skomer Marine Nature Reserve.
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| Pembrokeshire
is also an area rich in wildlife with many
species of birds and mammals to be found.
Some of the offshore islands are famous for
their bird colonies such as the Gannets of
Grassholme and the Manx Shearwaters of Skomer.
Many of the more remote beaches and islands
become home to seals during the breeding season
and dolphins and porpoises are often sighted
in the area. |
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As
well as the breathtaking coastal scenery,
Pembrokeshire's underwater environment is
also very scenic and abundant with a diversity
of marine life. The strong sea currents
which race around this stretch of coastline
carry food and nutrients to ensure a healthy
growth of both plants and animals within
this marine environment.
With
many wrecks in the area for divers to explore
and underwater visibility up to 15 metres
this area is a superb venue for sports divers.
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When
diving in the area, we base ourselves at
the West Wales Diving Centre at Hasguard
Cross which is located on the Haverforwest
to Dale road (B4327) and near to Little
Haven and Broad Haven. We keep our club
boats and 4WD here and launch from local
sites such as Broad Haven and Little Haven
in St. Bride's Bay and Dale and Gelliswick
in Milford Haven.
From
these launch sites we can reach many of
our favourite dive locations at any state
of the tide and in almost any weather conditions.
The following links show maps of the launch
areas and popular diving areas:
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| There
are literally dozens of excellent dive sites
around this area of coast, information on
which can be obtained from the West Wales
Diving Centre. Some of the more famous dive
sites are shown on the map below.
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| The
West Wales Diving Gallery |
During the diving season the boats are kept
in
the boatyard at West Wales Divers. |
The boats being prepared and
checked out before use. |
When they are ready they cane be hitched up
and towed to the chosen launch site. |
The larger boats are quite heavy and require
a four
wheel drive vehicle to tow them. |
The outboard engines are large and powerful
so that the
boats can carry us at speed to the various
dive sites. |
After the divers have suited up
the dive gear is then loaded on to the boats.
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We usually use a tractor to tow the boats
down
the beach to the sea and launch them. |
Sometimes we use
four wheel drive vehicles. |
Final checks are
carried out on the beach. |
Using a tractor for launching and recovery
makes life a lot easier. (an awful lot easier)
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Once the boats are in the water
the engines are started and warmed up |
Somebody stays in the water to hold the boat
steady while everybody else climds aboard.
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The powerful outboard engines allow us to
travel quickly to the chosen dive site. |
The boats can carry eight divers with ease
and we usually take more than one boat on
a normal dive day. |
Sometimes we take all three boats. |
The Hen & Chicks
One of our favourite dive sites
a site with spectacular marine life
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The view from the other side. |
Hen and Chicks is usually diveable in bad
weather
when other more exposed sites are inaccessible.
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Stack Rocks (west side)
another popular dive site |
Brian Goffee as boat cover |
Skomer Island
Famous for the Skomer Marine
Nature Reserve |
One of the boats anchored
off the north wall of Skomer. |
Grassholme Island (birdshit island)
Owned by the RSPB and
home to a huge Gannet Colony |
Some good diving is to found
around this island. |
One of the main drawbacks to diving here is
the
terrific pong that comes from the gannet colony.
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The Smalls Lighthouse
Home to many seals and at the furthest limit
of our
club boats. There are several superb dive
sites out here
but due to its remote location, it can only
be visited
during periods of calm weather. |
The Club President
(Peter Rees) |
Our equipment officer Billy Whizz
and The club treasurer Jeff Canning
(a pair of real crooks) |
Dicky Taylor (club fashion guru) |
Guess how much I paid for this? |
Our senior citizen Phil the Flute |
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Gary Hortop wondering why he bought a Suunto
Computer. |
Merville Burrows
(the bearded wonder) |
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Divers kitting up on a crowded boat. |
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An afternoon in late summer. |
Going ashore for lunch. |
Heading for home. |
Recovering the boat with a tractor. |
