Belper Sub Aqua Club - "What's Bubbling!"

This Easter Belper Sub Aqua Club enjoyed our diving holiday and expedition based near Oban on the North West Coast of Scotland. Oban, also known as the gateway to the Isles due to the large number of passenger ferries departing for the neighbouring Isle of Mull as well as the Inner and Outer Hebrides, is equally ideal for the use of the Club boats. Each of our two boats, rigid inflatables (RIB’s) has a powerful engine capable of speeds of up to 40 knots which gave us access to world class dive sites either within the Sound of Mull or to islands to the south of Oban, ranging from fantastic ship wrecks to spectacular scenic dives.

Our actual base was Puffin Divers just south of Oban and this provided safe mooring for out boats, whilst the nearby Oban caravan park provided comfortable low cost accommodation for our ten strong expedition.

Club members travelled up on the Thursday before Good Friday in order to make the maximum use of the Easer Holiday, which meant that most members of the expedition were able to complete nine dives before returning home on Easter Monday afternoon.

The diving itself was carried out over an impressive range of sites, ranging from the gigantic wreck of the Rondo half way up the Sound of Mull, with its crystal clear water and plunging depths, to an exhilarating drift dive through the beautiful and serene Garvallach Islands to the south. The underwater visibility was generally very good for the whole weekend, whilst the weather top side, ranged from a little light drizzle on the Friday and Saturday to a glorious flat calm sunny day on the Sunday.

In all, we each spent over six hours underwater (or in Nigel’s case well over seven hours!) and the boats travelled over 70 nautical miles over the three and a half days. We encountered many varieties of fish, crab, lobsters, and Scallops, not to mention the fantastically colourful sponges, soft corals and anemones that seem to cover every surface, including the wrecks, in this part of Scotland. Overall a cracking trip, made all the better by excellent planning from our expedition organiser Sue, and one we’ll certainly want to repeat before too long.