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Warm water diva to cold water diver
By Helen Hadley on 21 September 2008
UK diving for girls is a bit of a new thing. More than 10 years ago there were, compared with now, very few women in UK diving – it simply wasn’t marketed or seen as the thing to do. Since then the sport has come on leaps and bounds, with a large range of women’s equipment now available and the number of women actively involved in the sport at all levels continues to grow year on year. So don’t be afraid, come dive with us in the UK.
The practicalities
Many people dive abroad for the visibility, flora and fauna and warm water. In the UK we have all these things, not better, not worse, just different.
Visibility can vary from 15m or more to less than 30cm depending on where you are and what time of year it is. Algal blooms can really affect the visibility in the summer, so it may be worth checking with a skipper the day before if you don’t like murky dives.
Temperature can vary from around 18 degrees on the south coast in the summer to less than 4 degrees at inland sites in the winter, but the sea getting down to around 6 or 7 degrees.
Underwater life in the UK can be fantastic. Shoals of tens of thousands of tiny fish, lobsters, cuttlefish, conger eels, cuckoo wrasse, octopus, crabs, anemones 6 inches across in the palest pinks and vibrant reds.
So what can the warm water woman diver expect from the UK, and what kit will you need?
Well, it’s a lot colder over here, especially away from the south coast, so be prepared to invest in a drysuit if you want to dive anywhere further north and not freeze. These come in all shapes and sizes, none of them flattering in any stretch of the imagination. If you are anything other than a stock size, I would heartily recommend a made to measure suit which will cost a little more but is well worth it in the long run. Also make sure the boots fit properly – it may be tempting to get a size small suit with size 10 feet off ebay, but seriously, get them changed as soon as possible!
If you have a BCD for warm water, you may find it wont fit over a bulky drysuit and undersuit, so it may be worth taking it along when you try any suits on.
Regulators need not be cold water ones if you only plan on diving in the summer, but if you do want to sample the delights of the winter diving scene, you need to invest in some cold water regs to prevent free flows etc.
If you have previously dived using fins with wetsuit boots it may be worth seeing if yours will also fit over drysuit boots, which can be rather bulkier.
A decent hood and gloves will be a good investment too. Generally you get a hood with the drysuit, but if it isn’t right, then change it for a thicker one. Gloves do go pretty small, but my personal recommendation is to get a pair with Kevlar fingers/palm. These will be a little more expensive, but I still have the pair I bought 225 dives ago and no holes.
As for cylinders, well, most people go for a 12litre cylinder, but if you feel this is too bulky then you can try a 10 litre. Top tip here is to try before you buy – most centres will hire out cylinders.
Diving is a little different here too
Many people who qualify abroad have done so through PADI. In the UK there are shops who can help organise PADI events, plus some PADI clubs, however the largest network of diving clubs in the UK is BSAC. Details of your local club can be found via the BSAC web page. There are also sites such as Yorkshire Divers where trips are organised via the internet away from the club environment.
Many clubs have a rib – a small inflatable boat which can take divers to sites – the number of divers depends on the size of the rib, but between 4 and 8 is usual unless you have a monster boat!
Many people prefer to use hardboats – boats permanently kept in the water, which can take more people in a little more comfort. Commonly they will have hot tea/coffee after a dive and a toilet. Many of the larger boats also have a diver lift to get you out of the water rather than a ladder.
Beware if you are short, some ladders can be a little tricky. If you are concerned, try to be one of the last pairs into the water, at least then there should be plenty of hands available to help if you do need assistance to get back aboard.
The nitty gritty
Diving in the UK isn’t really very glam, so forget the makeup. After one mask clear it will all have gone anyway, and panda eyes are not a good look. Hair is best tied back while on the boat, but take it out of the ponytail before you put your hood on as the tightness of the hood can make the bobble dig into your head. Nails will tend to go soft with time in the water – Sally Hansen Teflon Tuff will help prevent them snapping. You may well get cold after a dive, so a woolly hat is a very good idea. I actually take two, one for the immediate post dive when my hair is wet, and another for when I have dried off a bit and the cold wet hat isn’t keeping me warm.
Kit is heavy, so take things slowly. Never be afraid to ask for help, its what a buddy is for.
What if you need the loo? Since you will probably no longer be diving in a wetsuit, other options need to be explored! A small rib is not a good place to need the loo, they lurch around in the swell and offer no privacy of any form. In this case I would wear a nappy, tena lady pants are the best ones, not bulky at all and pretty anonymous really. Hardboats usually have a toilet which makes life a whole load easier. However, peeing while wearing a drysuit is not easy, especially as the toilet areas of boats tend to be tiny. A Shewee is a good investment – a funnel which allows you to pee standing up and has received a good reviews. Not very glam, but when you need to go, glam is pretty low on the list of priorities.
So what if I want to have a go?
Diving in the UK is pretty different to diving abroad. If you have doubts, it may be worth hiring the equipment before you dive to check you like it. The south coast offers some excellent shore diving, which would be a very good introduction to UK conditions as in the summer you can probably dive in a 5mm wetsuit and not get too cold.
Contact your local Dive Shop for details of any trips they run, kit hire and courses:
* Visit the BSAC website * Check out the nearest club to yourself * Join Spotz and sign up for a trip appropriate to your experience levels.Contact
Author: Helen Hadley
Email: info@travel-dive.com
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