Recent Events by Club Members

Sunday 11th Oct. Another successful club dive organised by Sally. 16 people dived Babbacombe just after high tide, then enjoyed a hearty brunch after at the Sloop. Well done to those doing their first dives after qualifying – welcome to the UK dive club 🙂

Sunday 4th October boat dive. A perfect autumn Sunday made for an easy, no‑fuss dive day. We met at Polly Steps, loaded the RIB and headed for the wreck of the Galicia, having the whole area to ourselves. Viz was typically soupy, but fish life was plentiful. Nick, Howard and James enjoyed a long dive, while Martin and I dropped straight onto a free‑swimming conger and plenty of bib, pollack and squat lobsters. After swapping James for Chris at Teignmouth, we dived Watcombe Caves, exploring its rocky gullies and clearing a ghost lobster pot before leaving its stubborn occupants in peace. Photos to follow.

Sunday 4th October. Shore dive organised by Jake. 12 divers went to Brixham in beautiful sunshine to enjoy the warm water there. Well done to Harrison for his first UK dive (glad you enjoyed it!), and to Gemma and Molly for finding an octopus. Then off to the Sloop for a well earned brunch. Well done to Ben for finding a paddle. Thanks to Andy W and Rick for being shore cover.

Sunday 27th Sept Night Dive. 14 divers arrived for a night dive at Babbacombe, and well done to Lara and Molly who were dong their first ever night dive. Nice to have Jim as a visitor from Bude SAC. Lots of life around, and a few happy divers finished off a great evening with take away food 🙂

Sunday Sept 20th. Boat dives. It is not quite the equinox but is was still dark when we set off for Plymouth. Seven divers and one Cox / boat handling instructor all set for a late summer bimble out of Mountbatten.

Somewhere in the vicinity of Stoke Point we dropped into the deep and explored the rocky reefs and gullies. Life abounded, including cuttlefish, conger and several of the largest sea hares that Rob or I have ever seen. A quick trip back to swap divers and off again to the Glen Strathallen as the sun final came out. We managed to get the shot bang on the boilers, something that does not always happen on the GSA.

No sea hares this time but several congers (one huge one) and lots of cuttlefish made Sylvia’s first Rhib dive a memorable one. She even managed to elegantly board the boat in deep water, something some of us struggled with in the shallows.

Thank you to all involved for making if an enjoyable day, and particularly to Clint for Coxing and looking after the boat handlers.

Sunday Sept 20th. Club shore dive organised by Jason. Fabulous conditions above and below water today, and it’s still wonderfully warm at 17C. Catshark, congers, lobsters, and thousands of prawns. A great dive, followed by a hearty brunch at the Sloop.

Club trip to Berwickshire, September 2026

St. Abbs and Eyemouth offered the opportunity for both shore and boat diving in the voluntary marine reserve.

The clear cool waters and hard rocks have created spectacular communities of filter feeders. Sunstars, wolf fish and other species not seen in our local waters add to the experience.

Based at the Scoutscroft Holiday Park, we undertook 2 shore dives and 4 days of hard boat dives with Marine Quest (Eyemouth), visiting a variety of reefs and wrecks during our week in Scotland.

Thank you to everyone who braved the 700 mile round trip and made the trip a success. Here are some of the great photos from that trip ….. 🙂

23rd August. Beach clean organised by Sally. 13 divers went in at Babbacombe to clean up discarded fishing tackle, beer cans, and other debris that had found it’s way under the water. It’s not that long since we did a previous clean up, so we didn’t find as much rubbish as last time. Still well worth doing though, and the water is still easily warm enough for an hours dive. Loads of dead spider crabs round though.

Sunday 16th August. Galecia boat dive, organised by Gemma. Writte up by Jayden ….. My first wreck dive with BSAC was on the remains of the SS Galicia, we had gone over the plan before arriving at the diving site via boat and did a backwards roll to enter the ocean. We then followed the buoy line when reaching 16 meters. I descended on what I thought was the sea bed but was actually a huge accumulation of sea life. I didn’t know the UK could have this kind of sea life. After navigating through the fish we were able to touch the real sea bed at around 19 meters, exploring the wreck was so cool I was able to see at least 20 conger eels, a blue lobster and a few shrimp.

Sunday 9th Aug. Diving the M2 submarine (off Weymouth). Two days of great diving organised by Jane, with glorious weather, and very light winds. Conditions were good for us to dive this famous submarine …. which was experimental with a sea plane on board. Sadly, the sub sank, with all aboard lost, and now is a very sombre dive in 33 metres deep. Here’s an excellent video by Nikki. What a fabulous dive!

Sunday 2nd Aug. Club dive organised by Sally. Despite a mild onshore breeze, 12 divers went to Babbacombe Beach for a dive. Well done to Molly for her first sea dive since qualifying. Stevie was great helping people in and out the water, and then off to the Sloop for a well earned brunch. Lots of happy faces around, so people had fun on this dive. Thanks to Rustic Diver (Charles) for the video, and Wendy for the photos.

Sunday 26th July. The Coronation dive ….. nearly! Sadly, we couldn’t control the weather, and the dive site presented us with nasty waves and a big rolling swell. So we found a sheltered bay between Rame Head and Cawsands, and had some fun there. Well done to Nik for organising, and Nigel for towing the boat.

Sunday 19th July. Our Marine Champion (Sally) and club chairman (Nik) both organised litter picking dives. Sally’s was at Plymouth Waterfront, and Nik from the boat. Eight divers went to Plymouth, and thanks to Rick for being shore cover.

Six keen litter-picking scuba diving wombles from Exeter BSAC headed out on the club boat for a marine clean-up dive to previously unchartered Torquay Pier. Leaving from Teignmouth we headed out in good weather towards the.. er..English Riviera. The sun was shining but not overpowering, making for a perfect day on the water. Arriving and dropping into approx 5 metres of water we explored for ocean garbage along the pier wall and metal pillars running beneath the walkway.

In a small area there was an abundance of life. We spotted blennies, lobsters and a conger eel tucked away inside a pipe only to then make a daytime appearence when disturbed. The real stars of the day, however, were the several hundred soft-shelled spider crabs that seemed to have taken over the place

The wall was also home to a large spread of craggy oysters but ..alongside enjoying the wildlife, we got to work removing marine trash. Any bits of plastic, food wrappers etc were bagged up. Among the haul were fishing weights, snagged crab nets, a plastic bucket, a vape, a mobile phone, hotel room card, a lost cap and bundles of discarded fishing line. We also came across an abandoned “ghost” lobster pot which we opened to free the unfortunate creatures trapped inside.

After the first dive, we enjoyed lunch on the harbour steps. One hungry diver still in a damp wet suit hot-footed it to the local fish and chip shop! We then swapped out our cylinders and headed to our second site, London Bridge, a natural sea arch along that stretch of coast. Visibility there was good, allowing us to explore the site’s swim-throughs and rocky features.

Back in Teignmouth, we finished the day by sorting through our haul of rubbish. This is a stinky job but it’s an important part of helping to protect our local marine environment.

All in all, it was a fantastic day of diving, adventure and good company. We came home with some good memories and the satisfaction of knowing we’d made a small but worthwhile difference to the sea we all enjoy so much

Well done to William and Grace for passing their Ocean Diver qualifications.

Lots of hard work to get qualified, but now you can dive anywhere in the world down to 20 metres. 🙂

Sunday 5th July. Sally organised a club dive at Beacon Cove. It looked beautiful there, and loads of divers went to see what life was around.

Friday 3rd July. Andy W and Andy L left their dry suits behind, and had great dives in semi-dry suits. As a follow up to the beach clean they found an abandoned lobster pot that had been deliberately cut open, and not attached to a surface buoy. This lobster pot would have just stayed on the sea bed, slowly deteriorating. A lift bag was used to bring it in, and ex-cafe owner Wayne is arranging for it to go back to a local fisherman.

Friday 26th June. Fit Steps with Paula. And now for something completely different ….. one of our divers ran an hour of fitness for any club member that wanted to come along, and there was a reasonable turnout for the session. Good fun, and people really seemed to enjoy it – no matter what age!

fitstepswithpaulainexeter@gmail.com or 07971 774528

Sunday 21st June – Another underwater clean organised by Sally. 12 divers went in and cleaned up more underwater rubbish. Amazing views of spider crabs getting ready to moult. Well done to Oli and Jay for diving in UK waters, and then almost everyone had brunch at Romany Jones cafe.

Tuesday 16th June. Exmouth Docks. This site now requires special permission to dive, and viz was great for Derek and Steve. Lots to see at this interesting site, but it’s not a site for beginners. The current rushes in, then pauses just long enough for a dive, then the current rushes out again. This can be an amazing dive site, and you can get down to 24metres. 🙂

Sunday 14 June, four intrepid divers struck out from Mount Batten slipway for the James Eagan Layne in the club’s RIB. With Nigel at the helm, the journey was fast and smooth, only getting a bit more lumpy as we rounded Rame Head. Totnes SAC kindly let us use their shot line, so Nick and Nigel were soon descending for an atmospheric (OK, a bit murky) dive around the bow and through the holds among the varied WW2 cargo. As always on this terrific site, time flew by and all too soon it was time to return to the surface. Jane and Charles then had the opportunity to enjoy the wreck’s delights. The freshening wind meant that the return to base skippered by Charles was unavoidably slower and bumpier then the outward leg.

We switched to the Mew Stone for a smooth ride (thank you, Jane) and a very relaxed and scenic second dive across the shale, following a small ridge. A cuttlefish gave Nigel and Nick a fabulous display of colour-changing camouflage, while Jane and Charles enjoyed the company of an octopus. It was then time to head home, with high water making the boat recovery a lot easier for Nick.

Thank you to Nigel for towing and for everyone for making it a very enjoyable Sunday.