Farne Islands - 29th - 30th October 2022
Trip Organiser : Jo Watson
Trip Report : Rosy Ball
We arrived Friday evening at the lovely Old Schoolhouse B&B and everyone met up at The Ship Inn for a (large) bite to eat and a few bevy’s.
Saturday dawned bright and sunny. The boat was laden with kit and all aboard and headed out on calm sea to the Islands for first dive of the day.
A moderately warm sea temp of 11-14 degrees and a lovely wall dive down to 17.6m with an abundance of sea life including lobsters, squat lobsters, Tompot blennies, crabs of all sizes, starfish, anemones, sponges and in between all this the seals came and had a little swim and a nosy with us. DSMB’s deployed as had quite a quick drift in places.
Surface interval with a much needed hot cuppa followed by our second dive. A shallower kelp dive to 11.5m and finding the channels to see plenty of marine life including nudibranchs, crabs, lobsters and a lot more playful seals. Great return trip to port on calm seas.
The second day dawned a little more blustery and, as most of us are aware, this is usually a blow out day but no, all was well and after a same start time due to clocks falling back we set off. Shallow dive up to 11.6m in among the kelp with very playful seals and an abundance of marine life in the nooks and crannies.
Surface interval with a cuppa enjoyed and then prepare for second dive. A deeper wall dive to 18m that had quite a drift on it but exciting to see all the varieties of sponges, seaweeds, anemones, plenty of crabs, lobsters, squat lobsters fighting in crevices and sun starfish enjoying a meal. Back to port on a bit choppier waters and then empty the boat of kit, pack up, dry off due to a couple of minor suit leaks, and drive back.
Our Ocean Divers enjoyed their first taste of hard boat diving and in one case their first open water dives.
Thank you to Richard Lund for operating the diver lift and taking plenty of pics and to all the divers for a great safe trip.
About the Farne Islands |
The Farne Islands are a group of islands off the coast of Northumberland, England. The islands consist of 28 islands at low water and 15 islands at high water and are home to terns, puffins, guillemots, shags, eider ducks and kittiwakes. Amgonst SCUBA divers, the islands are most well known for the 4,000 or so Atlantic grey seals which call it their home, one of the largest colonies on the east coast of England. However, the Farne Islands have equally amazing scenic and wreck diving. |
