TORBET ON THE TUBE
Jersey Devils
The beach at La Geve de Leq
Andy Torbet and family strike out across the Channel for a beach holiday packed with snorkelling opportunities
I
’ d never dived the Channel Islands . In fact , the only one I ’ d visited in the past was Alderney to film an episode for the BBC ’ s Coast series . The episode was about storm petrels , and although I managed a trip to sea in a fishing boat , I didn ’ t get the opportunity to jump off it in dive kit . However , on the recommendation of a fellow snorkeller who lives on Jersey , I headed to that island in my motorhome packed with snorkel kit … oh and my family .
Snorkelling around the cliffs and beaches of Jersey
Being a small island , there ’ s usually always a sheltered spot to get in the sea somewhere around Jersey . As with any island , you can always head to the lee side to find calmer waters , easier entries and , hopefully , better visibility . It ’ s one of the reasons Malta makes such a great shore diving destination . And just like Malta , Jersey has great dive spots all around its shores .
The beaches – there are dozens of them – are usually beautiful , clean sandy expanses flanked by rocky outcrops with small , citadels of rocks and reefs further out to sea . I ’ d either pick one side of the beach to swim around or push further out to get away from the sand .
In general , there ’ s usually more interest , marine life and visibility around the rocky areas compared to the swathes of sand .
This can be true of any small island in the UK , including those I ’ ve dived in Shetland , Orkney and the Hebrides . What made Jersey a little different was a balmy water temperature of 18 ° C . I had packed a five-millimetre wetsuit , and even that proved too much ! I spent up to two hours at a time in the water , and was even grateful for the occasional trickle-and-flush of water ingress through a badly patched hole in the shoulder .
To be honest , the visibility wasn ’ t the greatest . We had arrived during some northerly winds and just after some strong southerlies , so all sides of the island had been stirred up . However , duck-diving among the shadows of the huge fields of kelp allowed me to ferret out large wrasse , crabs and even lobster . The many sea caves and chasms were particularly good fun above and below the water line . Islands like Jersey can be hot spots for marine life , an oasis of shallower waters amongst the deep pelagic environment .
64