What ’ s BSAC all about ?
Published by :
IN2 PUBLISHING Ltd , PO Box 7492 Kidderminster , DY11 9HB Email : info @ in2publishing . co . uk
Publishing Director : Jon Fellows Editor : Simon Rogerson Sub Editor : Kristina Pedder Design : Paul Hanson Equipment Testing : Neil Hope
Advertising Director : Charlie Wise Email : charlie @ in2publising . co . uk Tel : 01398 310 250 Mob : 07787 565 771
Commercial Manager : Rob Dubery Email : rob @ in2publishing . co . uk Tel : 01398 310 250
Advertising Manager : Carolyn Southcott Email : carolyn @ in2publishing . co . uk Tel : 01398 310 250
© 2023 British Sub-Aqua Club
All rights reserved . No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without written permission of the copyright owners . Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication , the publishers cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions . In the interest of independence and impartiality , many features in SCUBA have been written on behalf of the publisher by third party experts . It should be noted that any opinions and recommendations expressed therein are the views of the writers themselves and not necessarily those of BSAC . BSAC and publishers ensure that the paper used for printing this publication has been sourced from sustainably managed forests .
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Scorpion
or Stone ?
CONTENTS
If you love diving and want to benefit from great training and an international community of scuba divers and snorkellers , you should get to know BSAC .
What ’ s BSAC all about ?
BSAC stands for British Sub-Aqua Club , and we are the UK National Governing Body of scuba diving and snorkelling . We have clubs , centres , and members worldwide who are all as passionate as we are about the underwater world .
We are Britain ’ s biggest dive club , with hundreds of local clubs run by committed divers and snorkellers on a non-profit basis . With us , you can learn to dive from the age of 10 and snorkel from the age of six .
If you ’ re already a diver , that ’ s great ! All divers are welcome at BSAC . You could further your training or just join us on some great diving . Or both !
As well as developing safety and training standards and supporting our community , we are also focused on the environment and underwater heritage to help protect the waters we love to dive and the earth we live in .
Have a look at this magazine to get a real feel for what we ’ re about — we think you ’ ll love what you read . To get involved , head to bsac . com , email us at hello @ bsac . com or call 0151 350 6201 . We ’ d love to hear from you !
JOIN BSAC TODAY : bsac . com / joinus FIND YOUR LOCAL BSAC CLUB : bsac . com / findaclub or call + 44 ( 0 ) 151 350 6201
8 SCUBA HUB
All the latest BSAC and diving news
16 Critter Confidential
Paul Naylor looks at one of our most beautiful corals – the pink sea fan
19 Kirsty Andrews visits the unspoiled wilderness of Loch Carron
21 Yo-Han Cha spends a day with marine clean-up volunteers
22 Becky Hitchin investigates the brain power of cetaceans
24 Centres Forward
Training in Malta with SevernTec dive centre
26 SCUBA Chat
Your letters , news and tributes
29 Club Focus
Milton Keynes Sub Aqua Club , guardians of the Blue Lagoon
34 Rediscover the Racehorse Isle of Man SAC ’ s mission to pinpoint the wreck that led to the creation of the RNLI
39 Reg Vallintine and the Cave of Doom
Story of a daring rescue , from the BSAC history files
42 Scorpion or Stone ?
How to tell the cryptic ambush predators apart
46 BSAC Courses
Plan your training schedule with our events listing
48 Protect Our Seas
War on plastic pollution + Do sharks have personalities ? + Start your own wreck group + Swimmer discovers ancient cargo + Mexico ’ s secret blue hole
53 Travel Special : Wrecks of Gallipoli
John Yarrow reports from Turkey ’ s Dardanelles Strait
60 Test Centre
Spare Air 300 + Fourth Element Navigator Mask + Marine Reflective Tape
64 Snorkelling
Andy Torbet seeks out snorkelling opportunities in the Moroccan desert
66 Crossword
Pit your scuba savvy against Charles Wheeldon ’ s latest puzzle
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