The only word for diving on the South Wales coast this weekend is NO! We've got some huge swell coming in, possibly reaching 11ft. Add to that some strong Southerlies and Westerlies (gusting over 40 knots) and the sea is not the place to be.
All is not lost however. The beauty of South Wales for diving is it's access to inland dive sites which will give you the opportunity to dive even when mother nature doesn't want you to. Our advice for this weekend if you want to get a dive in is to head to Chepstow in South Wales or Vobster Quay just across the border in Sommerset. Temperatures, although mild for this time of year, will be low so your thermal protection is going to be absolutely vital.
We're back in the pool in Cardiff this weekend and it's going to be a busy time. We've got a number of pupils from a local school coming down for the first part of their PADI Open Water Diver qualification. They'll be completing the referral part of the qualification before heading off on a dive trip to complete their open water dives - in my day we were lucky if we got to visit a museum!
We've also got some other students who'll be taking the PADI Refresher course. This course is for those who have previously completed their PADI training but haven't dived in the last 6+ months and allows them to reacquaint themselves with the equipment and procedures in the pool environment.
The swell returns to the South Wales coast this weekend, reaching up to 7ft potentially on Sunday. Wind is generally fairly gentle although you could experience some gusts up to 13knots - 15knots and will be a moving between a Southerly and West South West over the course of the weekend. The conditions are relatively calm in the lead up to the weekend, so if you can plan your dive around the swell you could find some acceptable diving conditions along parts of the South Wales coast, particularly in more sheltered bays, such as Caswell Bay or Oxwich Bay in Swansea.
Thermal protection is still vital, even if the weather is particularly mild for this time of year, it will have made very little difference to water temperatures, so you'll need decent thermal protection for any dive, dry suits, hoods, gloves will all be required. The correct, properly serviced equipment is always vital so, if you're thinking of heading out with your lightweight travel BCD and regulator, think again! Perhaps sign yourself up to the PADI Advanced Open Water or PADI Rescue Diver course so you can understand why you shouldn't be doing that.
We don't have any courses this weekend, however we're out and about scouting locations for some new courses we're hoping to announce soon. These new courses will complement our current offerings of PADI courses and we're really excited about them.
We're also starting to plan some more Dive Trips for the summer months and working with Cardiff University students who will be undertaking some marine research projects later in the year too.
The conditions should be a lot calmer this weekend that last. Swell is set to be low along the South Wales coast and although there is a strong wind it is set to be in a Northerly or Easterly direction (Offshore). The main issue you will likely find is the visibility as the conditions have been fairly unsettled over the last few days, but that doesn't mean diving is off. You just need to make sure you've properly planned your dive and take the correct equipment.
Water temperatures are still low as expected at this time of year so you will need to ensure you have the correct thermal protection, such as dry suit, good quality undersuit, hood, gloves. You also need to think about the thermal protection before and after the dives.
You may find better visibility and one of the inland dive sites in or near South Wales, such as Chepstow or Vobster Quay so they are always an option, but you will still need to properly plan your dives and thermal protection. In fact the water temperature in the inland sites may even be colder than the sea.
Last week saw us back in Hebron Hall, Cardiff running the PADI Open Water course and PADI Rescue Diver course. Both courses were a real success and we look forward to welcoming all of the students back when they complete the open water part of their course.
Our next PADI Open Water course is due to run on 4th March, so if you are thinking about starting you SCUBA diving adventures, get in touch and we can talk you through all of the options, prices and availability.
Get your passport, book a flight and get out of the UK! That's our best advice for getting a coastal dive this weekend. We've got huge winds over the next couple of days across South Wales, and once that calms down, the swell takes over, quite possibly reaching over 10ft at times. Even if you could get into and out of the water successfully with all that water movement, visibility is going to be affected and will likely impact the enjoyment of your dive.
If you can't fly off to an exotic destination at a moments notice, your best bet for a dive this weekend is to head to one of the inland sites in or near South Wales, such Chepstow or Vobster Quay. They'll be far less effected by all of the environmental conditions, so your main concern will be water temperature. Good quality thermal protection will be a must; dry suits, hoods, gloves, etc and you'll also need to think about how to stay and get warm whilst you are on the surface.
We're back in the swimming pool in Hebron Hall, Cardiff on Saturday with two PADI courses. We've got the PADI Open Water course running, which is the start of the students journey into Scuba Diving and we're also running the PADI Rescue Diver course for a number of students from Cardiff University.
The PADI Rescue Diver course teaches the students some basic first aid, rescue techniques (both self rescue and rescue of others) and a better understanding of the technical aspects of diving. After the 2 month break from courses whilst we were off diving with the Sharks in South Africa all of the instructors and Divemasters are excited to get back into it!
We're expecting strong winds along the South Wales coast and in the Bristol Channel this weekend, gusting to over 30 knots and in a Southerly and Westerly direction. This will have an effect on the visibility in the water and although the swell is moderate at around 3ft - 5ft the wind will create a lot of water movement.
Sea temperatures are still low at around 10° so if you do intend to head out for a coastal dive this weekend you'll need to ensure you have the correct thermal protection; dry suit, gloves, hood, warm undersuit, etc. You'll also need a detailed dive plan for your dive, including entry and exit from the water and proper thermal protection for before and after your dive too.
Our advice would be to head to one of the inland dive sites in or near South Wales, where the visibility is likely to be less affected by the wind. Water temperatures will still be low in these sites though, so proper equipment and planning is just as important.
Next week we'll be returning to Hebron Hall in Cardiff for the 1st part of our PADI Open Water course. This part of the course will teach the students the basic scuba diving skills they need in the pool as well as the theory required for any scuba diver. After they successfully complete this part of the course, they'll need to complete their 4 open water dives before they become qualified to dive up to 18m deep anywhere in the world.
We'll also planning some of our other courses for the next couple of months, such as the PADI Rescue Diver course, so wherever you are in your scuba diving journey, get in touch and we can discuss your next steps.
This biggest issue for diving in South Wales this weekend is, unsurprisingly, the temperature. Maximum temperatures across the weekend are set to be around 4° and sea temperature is likely to be under 10° too. So, if you are thinking of heading out for a dive, thermal protection is going to be absolutely vital as is a proper dive plan.
Swell is going to be a reasonable size along the South Wales coast, so is definitely something you'll need to factor in to your dive plan, entry and exit will need some real thought, however recent conditions have been settled and the tidal range is reasonably low (for the Bristol Channel) so you could have acceptable visibility along the coast this weekend. There will be some fairly strong winds this weekend, so if you are looking to dive on the coast, head for a sheltered bay and judge conditions all the time. Plan for the conditions before, during and after your dive.
As always, there is the option to head to one of South Wales' inland dive sites such as Chepstow or Vobster Quay (down the road in Sommerset). These sites give you much more certainty around environmental conditions, but at this time of the year temperature concerns cannot be escaped in the UK so inland diving will still require really good thermal protection.
We're back from our Dive Trip in South Africa and the only way to describe it - life changing!
The focus now returns to our training courses, with a PADI Open Water course running in Hebron Hall, Cardiff on 4th February. This is the first step for our students to become qualified divers, allowing them to dive up to 18m, anywhere in the world. It is also, we hope, just the beginning of their Scuba Diving journey.
If you've every thought about learning to Scuba Dive, make 2017 the year you do it. Get in touch now and we can talk you through the process and various training options available to you.
This weekend sees us expecting some fairly big swell, but more troublesome will be the strong winds, with gusts up to 30 knots in a North Westerly direction. This could make entry and exit difficult, particularly for shore dives and could also make visibility an issue. Add the massive tides we're expecting over the weekend (over 10m at high tide) and a coastal dive is pretty much out of the question on the South Wales coast this weekend.
All is not lost though. You may be able to take advantage of the milder winter we've been having this year and head to one of the inland sites here in South Wales. If you do head out for a dive in an inland site, you will need very good thermal protection, such as Dry Suit, thick undersuit, hood, gloves, etc as water temperatures will be low, around 9 degrees.
Your last option is to book a short notice trip and head to warmer climates, much like we're enjoying currently on our Dive Trip to South Africa for some water time with the sharks; Hammerheads, Bull Sharks and lots more!
As we said above, we're still enjoying our Dive Trip to South Africa with our instructors and some of our students, so there's no training planned this week. We'll be back soon with the PADI Open Water course starting back up on the first Saturday of February. We'll also be looking to run the PADI Advanced Open Water and PADI Rescue Diver courses early on in the year, so if you want to take the next step in your diving adventure, then get in touch.
With the big swell in the days leading up to the weekend, over the weekend and the massive tide, Scuba Diving conditions aren't looking great on the South Wales coast this weekend. Entry and exit will be difficult, getting caught in the tide is a risk and visibility will be... challenging.
Our advice is to either head inland to one of the dive sites in the South Wales area, or for those of you lucky enough to have started your Christmas holidays early, get yourself on a plane and treat yourself to an early, Scuba Diving shaped, Christmas present.
If you do stay in Wales, and head inland, you're going to need to ensure you've got good thermal protection, including Dry Suit, Hood, Gloves and plenty of layers for before and after the dive.
We're taking a break from the Scuba Diving training over the Christmas break as our focus turns to our Scuba Diving Trip to South Africa in the New Year. We're taking a number of our instructors, Divemasters and PADI students on the trip of a lifetime to dive with all kinds of marine life over 10 days. We'll be visiting a number of locations across South Africa building up to our meeting with the Sharks.
Scuba Diving in South Wales is off this weekend unless you are heading to an inland site. We're expecting huge swell (possibly reaching 10ft+), making any entry / exit very difficult and visibility will be effected too. Although wind strength will be reasonably gentle with the size of the swell and temperatures our advice is stay out of the sea.
Temperatures are higher here in South Wales than they have been over the last couple of weeks, so if you have the correct thermal protection you can always head to one of the inland sites in the area. Although temperatures are higher, they are still cold so, dry suits, hoods, gloves are all required as well as warm, layered clothes for before and after the dives.
Last weekend saw our Christmas Jumper charity dives in Cardiff, which was great fun! We introduced a number of young children to the delights of Scuba Diving and raised some money for Save the Children too. We though that was our last diving event of the year, but it looks like we've go one more day of introducing people to Scuba Diving as we look to run a private taster session for the residents of a lakeside estate.
After that, it's fully focused on our Dive Trip to South Africa. Our instructors and some previous students will be heading at to a number of locations all gearing up for the pinnacle; diving with sharks in their natural habitat.
Courses will be back up an running in February, so if you're thinking of starting or continuing you diving adventures, book your PADI Advanced Open Water, PADI Advanced Open Water or PADI Rescue Diver with us today
CAUTIONS – Temperature! Thermal protection is absolutely vital, proper dive planning is critical and properly maintained equipment key. With swell size, you need to really think about how you can enter and exit the water safely and weather you'll have the required visibility. Stay warm and stay safe!