Conditions Report for Scuba Diving in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
We could see acceptable conditions for Scuba Diving on the South Wales coast this weekend. Swell is set to be reasonably low, 2ft - 4ft of the South Wales coast, however we are predicting southerlies and westerlies which could cause problems. Whilst winds should be gentle on Saturday morning we are expecting stronger gusts Saturday afternoon and into Sunday, so it's vital you are aware of the effect of the wind.
Conditions have been fairly settled the last week in South Wales, however we are on a spring tide over the weekend so there will still be a large volume of water movement which could affect visibility.
For the best conditions head to the more sheltered bays, such as Stackpole Quay and Oxwich Bay and always remember the rule of twelfths, ensuring you dive on the incoming tide. Be aware of the swell size and wind, particularly for shore dives and how it could affect your entry and exit.
If you want to be confident of getting a dive in, the best option is to head inland. The National Diving and Activity Centre (NDAC) in Chepstow will offer diving less affected by the environmental conditions, or outside of South Wales you've got Vobster Quay.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
Last week we were back in the pool on Hebron Hall, Cardiff, teaching our latest wave of PADI Open Water Diver students. This week we'll be back to Chepstow and taking Sam, Robert and Alicia on their PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course The PADI Advanced Open Water Diver will give them the chance to work on their buoyancy, learn more about navigation and dive up to 30m.
Sunday will also see us leading some guided dives with qualified divers who are getting back into diving or diving in the UK for the first time.
CAUTIONS – The sea temperatures are slowly starting to raise, but we'll still need to take precautions with regards to thermal protection (wetsuits, drysuits, hoods, gloves). If you are planning to dive off the coast in South Wales, ensure you are aware of the changing conditions, making sure you know the conditions for both the beginning and the end of the dive.
Conditions Report for Scuba Diving in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
We could see acceptable conditions for Scuba Diving on the South Wales coast this weekend. Swell is set to be low and we have North / North East winds, which should keep the swell low. We have had some fairly unsettled conditions recently and are expecting some more heavy rain on Friday so visibility could be a problem.
For the best conditions head to the more sheltered bays, such as Stackpole Quay and Oxwich Bay and always remember the rule of twelfths, ensuring you dive on the incoming tide. Be aware of wind direction changing, Southerlies and Westerlies could lead to unacceptable conditions, and increasing swell size, particularly for a shore dive.
If you want to be confident of getting a dive in, the best option is to head inland. The National Diving and Activity Centre (NDAC) in Chepstow will offer diving less affected by the environmental conditions.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
The instructors have been travelling all over the UK these last weeks, putting on PADI Open Water Diver courses for schools across the South East of England. This weekend they're having a break from training but will be back next weekend taking students through the referral part of the PADI Open Water Diver qualification. We also have some Advanced Open Water course coming up in June.
CAUTIONS – We're still going to need to take sensible precautions with regards to thermal protection as water temperatures are still going to be quite low. If you are planning to dive off the coast in South Wales, ensure you are aware of the changing conditions, making sure you know the conditions for both the beginning and the end of the dive.
Conditions Report for Scuba Diving in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
We're expecting some fairly big swell this weekend, possibly 6ft in certain places in South Wales and we have some Southerlies and Westerlies on us too. Add the unsettled conditions we've had over the last few days and the tidal movement and conditions don't look too good for scuba diving on the coast of South Wales.
You may find acceptable diving conditions on Sunday in some of the sheltered bays, such as Stackpole Quay or Oxwich Bay but you need to stay aware of wind direction and speed and the conditions we've seen over the last few days will mean visibility is likely to be poor. If you do end up diving off the coast, make you remember the rule of twelfths and always dive on the incoming tide, which this weekend will be mid to late afternoon.
If you want to get a dive in, the best option is to head inland. The National Diving and Activity Centre (NDAC) in Chepstow will offer you a dive that isn't as affected by the environmental conditions or if you want to try an inland site outside of South Wales, there's always Vobster Quay in Somerset for you.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
Once again a break in training the students this weekend, however our instructors are back out doing their own training. They'll be completing the practical part of the RLSS Water Management Level 2 course which covers all of the water types we dive in, including still water, rivers and sea.
CAUTIONS – We're still going to need to take sensible precautions with regards to thermal protection as water temperatures are still only going to be around the 10°C mark in both the sea and inland sites. With the strong winds we are expecting and reasonably low temperatures you also need to think about protection whilst you're out of the water too. If you are planning to dive off the coast in South Wales, ensure you are aware of the changing conditions, making sure you know the conditions for both the beginning and the end of the dive.
Scuba Diving Conditions Report for Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
Swell is set to be low on the South Wales coast this weekend and the northerly wind should help to keep it low. The tidal range is also good this weekend, with a high of approx. 8m and a low of around 3m we should have acceptable conditions for diving, particularly in the sheltered bays, such as Stackpole Quay will see the better conditions. Remember the rule of twelfths and look to dive on the incoming tide, which this weekend will be around 11:00 - 13:00.
You'll still need to keep an eye on the visibility, which could be poor due to the water movement and unsettled conditions we've had in South Wales this last week but generally we expect the water course to be settled and safe.
Swell size, wind strength and wind direction are all set to change for the worse into the early part of next week meaning conditions could very well become unsafe, so it's vital you track the swell, tidal conditions and wind before making any decision to dive, ensuring you are aware of the expected conditions at both the beginning and end of your planned dive(s).
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
A break in training this weekend after last weekends PADI Open Water course at Hebron Hall in Cardiff. With the conditions we're expecting this weekend perhaps we'll just head out for a pleasure dive somewhere along the South Wales coastline instead.
CAUTIONS – As always with UK diving at this time of year, you need to ensure you have the correct thermal protection, including Hoods, Gloves, Dry, or Semi-Dry, suit and base layers. Be sure to check local tidal times and conditions before making any dive.
Scuba Diving Conditions Report for Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
We should see low swell with acceptable wind strength across the weekend. However we're set to see some huge tides over the next few days, 9 - 10m creating some very challenging conditions. Certain areas of South Wales could be an option with the depth of the tide allowing you to keep within the protection of the bays in Swansea but you'll need time your dive to be within the 2 hours before high tide and will also need to be aware of the effect the tides will have on visibility before making any decision to dive.
In our opinion the best option is to head to one of the inland diving sites here in Wales to reduce the impact of the environment conditions.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
This weekend sees us back at Hebron Hall in Cardiff taking our next group of PADI Open Water Diver students through their confined water dives and theory sessions. Upon successful completion of these they'll be able to complete their open water dives, either with ourselves at The National Diving and Activity Centre in Chepstow or with any PADI Dive Centre throughout the world.
CAUTIONS – As always with UK diving at this time of year, you need to ensure you have the correct thermal protection, including Hoods, Gloves, Dry, or Semi-Dry, suit and base layers. Be sure to check local tidal times and conditions before making any dive.
Scuba Diving Conditions Report for Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
It's bank holiday weekend and typically South Wales has decided to throw a spanner in the works for diving. We're due some big swell over the weekend into Monday, possibly reaching 6ft - 9ft and on top of that the wind is set up be strong, gusting to gale force at times. This is going to lead to stormy sea conditions and virtually zero visibility - not the time to be diving here on the South Coast of Wales unfortunately.
Not all is lost however. You can always head to one of the inland sites we have in South Wales, such as Chepstow or Vobster Quay in Somerset which should offer more shelter from the environmental conditions and better safety.
If you are on the coast and just want to get in the water, surfing could be an option with the big swell, but you still need to be wary of sea conditions, high winds and the tides.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
A break in the scuba courses over the bank holiday weekend, but we'll be back at Hebron Hall in Cardiff next weekend, 7th May, running the PADI Open Water Diver Referral dives and theory sessions for our next group of students.
They'll be no break for our instructors though as they head off with our sister company, Quest Adventures, to do some further water safety training on the two of the Gorges in the Brecon Beacons
CAUTIONS – Water temperatures are still cold, about 10 degrees and you will also need to consider the wind chill whilst you are out of the water. Make sure you take precautions, particularly with the correct thermal protection for both in and out of the water.
The students and instructors making their way to the training platform
This weekend saw us take our latest 5 students to The National Diving and Activity Centre in Chepstow to complete their PADI Open Water Diver qualification after they completed their referral dives in Hebron Hall, Cardiff earlier in the year. We're pleased to say we had a 100% pass rate.
The final qualification dives took place over a weekend, with 2 dives on each day. These dives include an assessment of the skills the students previously learnt in the pool environment, such as mask and equipment skills in an open water environment, along with a navigation section and buoyancy control.
We were fortunate to get some beautiful weather for the weekend and the visibility in the water was fantastic, around 10m. Hopefully we'll see them back to complete their Advanced Open Water Diver qualification in the near future and most of them already have plans for more diving in the near future.
So, congratulations to Aaron, Allanah, Huw, Michael and Sam, the latest members of the scuba diving community!
Out of the water, our instructors and Divemasters have continued to expand their knowledge and training and have started the RLSS National Water Safety Management Programme. This is a nationally recognised course that covers safety across all types of water and will see them participating in a number of practical sessions on rivers, lakes, beaches and gorges.
Scuba Diving Conditions Report for Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
The weather is looking quite good for this time of year this weekend and the swell has eased up, particularly over the weekend, meaning the diving conditions could be acceptable in the regions of Swansea and South Wales over the next few days. We are, however, due some strong gusts of wind, possibly up to gale force, so if you are planning to head for the sea keep an eye on this and dive in locations protected from the the prevailing winds. You also need to watch for poor visibility due to the sea movement and recent weather but the water course should be relatively safe and settled.
Areas of the Mumbles in Swansea, such as Oxwich Bay, and further west, such as Stackpole Quay will have some of the better conditions. Be aware of the large tidal movement however and always try to dive on the incoming tides.
If the poor visibility is a problem, once again there is the option of heading to one of the inland sites here in South Wales, such as the National Diving & Activity Centre in Chepstow or Vobster Quay where visibility could be better.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
Last weekend saw us take our first students to Chepstow and once again this weekend we'll be taking the next 5 students to complete their open water qualifying dives for their PADI Open Water Diver qualification. They'll be completing their dives at the NDAC in Chepstow to ensure we have the best conditions available and upon successful completion will be qualified to dive anywhere in the world up to 18m.
CAUTION - Water temperatues will still be cold, about 10 degrees in both the sea and freshwater. Make sure you taken precautions, particularly with the correct thermal protection, such as gloves, hoods, boots, 10mm semi-dry, or full dry suit, under layers, base layers, etc
Scuba Diving Conditions Report for Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
The weather isn't looking too bad for this weekend and the wind and swell has eased up, meaning the diving conditions could be acceptable in the regions of Swansea and South Wales over the next few days. Watch for poor visibility due to the sea movement and recent weather but the water course should be relatively safe and settled.
Areas of the Mumbles in Swansea, such as Oxwich Bay, or further west, such as Stackpole Quay will have some of the better conditions. Be aware of the large tidal movement however and always try to dive on an incoming tide.
If the poor visibility is a problem, there is always the option of heading to one of the inland sites here in South Wales, such as the National Diving & Activity Centre in Chepstow or Vobster Quay where visibility could be better.
Scuba Diving Training in Cardiff, Swansea & South Wales
This weekend sees us taking our next group of students to complete their open water qualifying dives for their PADI Open Water Diver qualification. They'll be completing their dives at the NDAC in Chepstow and upon successful completion will be qualified to dive anywhere in the world up to 18m.
CAUTION - Water temperatues will still be cold, about 10 degrees in both the sea and freshwater. Make sure you taken precautions, particularly with the correct thermal protection, such as gloves, hoods, boots, 10mm semi-dry, or full dry suit, under layers, base layers, etc