ENVIRONMENT
Taking it further
Self-improvement for scuba scholars
Jane Maddocks highlights some learning and research resources that could take your diving to a new level for the next season
For UK divers , the days are getting shorter and colder . Bad weather is likely to be affecting sea conditions , and the days of 60-minute plus dives in good visibility and warm water are behind us - or in the future planning for 2023 .
Planning the diving for next year is quite a good way to get through those days when the rain or snow lashes the windows , and the idea of being too hot in a drysuit on a hard boat just seems like fantasy .
How do you plan and prepare for new dive and projects for the new year ? My thoughts centre around planning what sites I will be diving and making sure I can get the most out of it .
Experienced divers will have their own ways of preparing for new challenges , but for those fairly new to diving there are ways of making winter part of preparing for the next big project or dive trip .
Do you love diving reefs and wrecks ? Do you look at a colourful reef and wish you knew more about the marine life you see ? Being able to identify species with some confidence can give you a real buzz .
During the winter , why not persuade your branch instructors to do the BSAC ’ s
Marine Life Appreciation course for you . It will give you a pretty solid foundation for taking marine life identification further . However many times I revisit the course , I always pick up something new , and there ’ s something really satisfying in being able to identify that fish , hydroid or other mystery creature .
As a result of doing the Marine Life Appreciation Course , you may decide that it is time to do the Seasearch Observer course . It is worth checking out the Marine Conservation Society website to find where you could do the theory part of the course , before completing the practical in 2023 .
If you run a Christmas present list then you might want to get some of the Seasearch guides to marine life , seaweeds , nudibranchs , and general guides to marine animals . So , the next time you can ’ t see the wreck because all the fish are in the way , you will at least be able to say what sort of fish they were !
“ Being able to identify species with some confidence can give you a real buzz .”
For lots of us , the whole point of diving is to find and dive shipwrecks . Wrecks have a back story . They have a name , a crew , the reason for the sinking , and a whole series of bits and pieces that made so many ships among the most advanced engineering projects of their day .
When many of us started wreck diving , we admitted to not knowing where we were on the wreck , or what we were looking at . The BSAC Wreck Appreciation Course and Wreck Diver Course are a great way to understand what it is you are diving on , and where you are on the wreck . They are fun to do , and really useful skills are taught during the practical sessions . They can be run in branch - if you do the theory now , then the practical side can wait for better weather .
Experienced divers could be looking at the Advanced Wreck Diver Course , planning it into diaries before everything gets booked up . It takes penetration into wrecks to a whole new level of awareness and skill .
Winter could be a good time to do some research into the stories behind the wrecks that your branch or friends are going to dive in 2023 . A site such as wrecksite . eu can be a great place to start . It gives all the basic information .
There are also lots of books out that give details about the sites that you might be planning to dive such as the Diver Guide to St . Abbs and Eyemouth .
And last but not least - SCUBA magazine . The articles about marine life , wrecks and diving projects are pretty inspirational . Whatever your interests time spent planning dives , and expanding your knowledge of critters , habitats , wrecks , and stories of the sinking is worth it . Planning will mean 2023 is so much more interesting than you can believe . Make winter work for you ! �
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