Kristina Pedder meets Orkney Sub-Aqua Club, whose members are ideally located for great diving opportunities
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Diving the Old Man of Hoy
Orkney Sub-Aqua Club
Kristina Pedder meets Orkney Sub-Aqua Club, whose members are ideally located for great diving opportunities
LOCATION: Orkney Islands, North Scotland MEMBERSHIP FEE:£ 95(+ BSAC)
CONTACT: e orkneysubaquaclub @ gmail. com
F Orkney Sub Aqua Club
More than 500 miles of diverse and dramatic coastline around the Orkney Islands, including exposed Atlantic and North Sea beaches and sheltered bays, provide diving aplenty. There’ s long been a local dive community exploring the stunning natural features both above and below the water; let’ s hear the story of their club.
Who are your members?
Our 20 members represent a wide profile of Orkney residents, as well as others who dive with us when they are visiting the islands. At present we have two Ocean Divers, four Sports Divers, seven Dive Leaders and seven Advanced Divers. We aim to grow the club further, by focusing on online visibility and community engagement.
What resources does the club have?
The club runs a 5.8-metre rigidhulled inflatable boat( RIB), which can comfortably take a maximum of six divers. If we require more space or are planning a longer distance offshore trip, then other club members with personal RIBs take these along as well. We have a small clubhouse in Hatston in Kirkwall where we run training, store our boat and operate our compressor. We own two club cylinders for both trainees and general member use. We also have an oxygen first aid kit.
Launching our RIB
When was Orkney Sub Aqua Club formed?
The original ScotSAC branch was formed in May 1969 in Mainland, Orkney, off the north coast of mainland Scotland and remained with the Scottish national agency for five decades, moving across to BSAC in 2020 to gain easier access to training and club support.
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