our members come from all over the region and from the north of England . It is difficult to meet up socially every week ; our social secretary plans regular events , such as meals out , but most socialising takes place post-dive in the local pub .
What is your club base like ?
We have an agreement with the Wigtown Bay Sailing Club for the use of its club house , along with shower and toilet facilities , and somewhere to keep our compressors . Over the years we have built up a good relationship with local fishers and residents ; we are now very much a recognised part of the community , recovering lost fishing gear and using our boats to help out at local events . Our free ‘ trips to see the seals ’ are always popular on fete days .
Who are your members ?
We have around 50 members , around 60 per cent are over-50s so we are actively seeking younger members . They are : eight trainee Ocean Divers ; seven Ocean Divers ; 17 Sports Divers ; 12 Dive Leaders , five of whom are nearly there with Advanced Diver ; three Advanced Divers ; a couple of snorkel members ; and three honorary members .
Tell us about club life ?
Lectures and events are hosted in the club room . The compressor and storeroom are harbour side . It is vital that we are selfsufficient in terms of air fills , as the nearest commercial fills are a four-hour round trip away in Glasgow . Because of this we run a large compressor and a smaller back-up . We have two Halmatic Arctic 21 RIBs , which can each take eight divers and a coxswain . We have some dive equipment that has been donated over the years . We can hire a pool in Newton Stewart , a half-hour drive away , but the cost means that we only book it for a set of four weekly two-hour sessions to train new students before the dive season .
And the set up for going diving …
As the boats are kept moored in the harbour it ’ s easy to dive whenever the weather permits . We don ’ t have to worry about towing , launching and recovering . Fortunately , there are sheltered sites on both sides of the Machars peninsula , so we can get out whatever direction of the wind . We dive year-round and aim to get out every weekend and weekdays too if we can ; many members are retired or can schedule their work . Despite unsettled weather conditions in 2023 and some boat refurbishment , the club still managed to achieve 420 dives , a little below our target of 500 .
Full boat : eight divers and a cox
Many clubs find looking after boats difficult .
Yes it is , we fully refurbished our original 40-year-old RIB Hammerhead last year , and we purchased a new engine and trailer so that we can tow the boat around to more training sites . We are currently refurbishing a smaller tornado RIB that will be dedicated to exploratory diving . We also offer our services as a safety boat for local regattas .
Mel Smith aka Master of the Deep can make our RIBs fly !
Our free trip to see the seals is full
Boat repairs can be expensive , how does the club raise funds ?
The main bulk of funding comes via grants for specific projects and we have been very successful , raising around £ 30,000 in the past year . We have received grants from local charities that support the community , including the Kilgallioch Community Fund , Holywood Trust and the Galloway Association , as well as smaller amounts from
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