Yo-Han looks back on a busy year of diving at home and abroad, in which old traditions gave way to new passions
YO-HANCHA
Trading seals for octopuses
Yo-Han looks back on a busy year of diving at home and abroad, in which old traditions gave way to new passions
The nights are drawing in and it’ s that time of year when some people say the diving season is over. It appears that I’ m in the minority, where I’ m still trying to find the time and buddies to go diving in the UK. I recently enjoyed a day’ s diving out of Plymouth. Well, it was a lovely day out on the boat. The recent storms had destroyed the visibility to the extent that I totally missed the boilers of the Rosehill that were right next to the shot line! If I am able to find willing buddies on weekends where I’ m not enjoying the
Christmas festivities, it looks like I’ ll be diving in quarries for the rest of the winter.
I can’ t complain about this year’ s diving though. I’ ve thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the octopus whose population exploded( figuratively) along the South Coast. I don’ t know when another octopus bloom will take place, so I hope I’ ve managed to make the most of it. It’ s certainly been thrilling to see a species that I’ d consider myself lucky to see once or twice a year in the UK, to knowing I’ d see them every time I went diving off Cornwall or Devon.
Despite living down south these days, I still managed a couple of trips up to Scotland, including the Scottish Nudibranch Festival, where I indulged in my love of sea slugs! I also managed to go diving again on the opposite end of the country, in the Scillies. Seeing my buddy Dave Bulpitt of Clifton Sub Aqua Club, a retired doctor, doing what I can only describe as an underwater rave when we came across the cannon of the Association wreck was a particular highlight.
“ I’ ve even done a course this year, something I’ ve not done for eight years. And it was about wrecks!”
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Unfortunately, I wasn’ t able to continue my lucky streak of going on a Farnes trip every year since I started diving in the UK. There just weren’ t enough free weekends this year; there never is. Looking back on this year, it looks like I’ ve traded seals for octopus.
I’ ve even done a course this year. Something that I’ ve not done for eight years! And it was about wrecks! I’ m not sure what’ s happening to me, but I thoroughly enjoyed the Nautical Archaeology Society’ s Foundation in Maritime Archaeology. Hopefully this will set me up for more wreck trips with them in the years to come, though I may get distracted by seals if any of the dives are off the Farnes.
I was also fortunate to go diving abroad this year. It was officially meant to be a holiday to South Korea to visit my family, but I managed to squeeze a week of diving into it. It would have been rude not to! Many thanks to Jongsub Park from BSAC Korea, who helped to organise the diving. And many thanks to Olivia Yoon for patiently guiding an underwater photographer around!
My final thanks for 2025 goes to all the octopus. You’ ve made it an amazing year of diving off the south coast! �