Diving
I am qualified as a PADI Rescue Diver.
I completed my Open Water and Advanced Open Water training at Fort Bovisand which is in Plymouth, England in July 1994. Since then I have only managed to dive occasionally. I went back to Bovisand in July 1995 to complete a drysuit course, to get used to my new suit, and also to dive using the old Siebe Gorman Hard Hat gear.
That was an experience not to be missed if you get the chance, I'll tell you.
I took my PADI Rescue Diver course over the week of June 9th to 12th and completed my Medic First Aid course on the 13th. That was hard work, for the Rescue qualification, I know now just how unfit I am !
Since summer 1995 I have hardly dived, but I have recently joined a new club run by The Diving Initiative (TDI). The club has over 300 members, so now I have no excuse for not going diving a bit more often! I have actually managed a few dives in Stoney Cove in May and June. I even managed to get a dive in in Gildenburgh Water, but it was late in the day on a Bank Holiday Monday so the water was very badly silted up, hence the viz of only about 3 metres.
My local, and most regular dive site is Stoney Cove, an ex quarry, which has a deepest point of 35 Metres. I'd never managed to get below about 12 Metres there, because I tend to use it as a place to do refresher dives when I haven't dived for a few months. However I have recently been expanding a little more, diving to some of the more deeper areas, such as the Wessex helicopter which lies at around 21 Metres.
So far, I have logged a total of 32 dives, which is a figure I am just beginning to put right now that I have a little more time on my hands, coupled with my joining a club.
I am hoping to get back to Bovisand again this summer as I want to dive the James Egan Lane, which is a prominent dive site in the area, and is apparrantly one of the best wreck dives around.
I was hoping that I may be able to pull this in while I was down in Plymouth studying for my Rescue Diver qualification, but alas there just wasn't the time, so I shall have to head off down there later in the year.