Aquaventure Scuba Club, Bristol. "sinking to new levels of professionalism"

Plan Your Own Dive Trips

So, you have recently qualified and want to plan your first solo trip or you need some advice to support you, well here is some advice for you to consider. As with anything this is just advice and the final responsibility for safety remains with the individual but this will hopefully assist in preparing your trips.

Firstly know your site. Ideally this will be a site you have previously visited. If not try to dive with someone who has experience at the site or make sure you personally learn about its topography, currents, depths and tides. These are usually available on the internet but it is good practice to speak to a local dive centre which can give you advice about the site and also the prevailing conditions such as visibility. You now know where to dive.

Once you have researched the site then you will need the tide times and to know when slack water is, it doesn't always coincide with high or low water. This can be really important. For example Breakwater Beach at Brixham has no tidal current to speak of when diving close to the shore. Drive a few hundred yards further on to Shoalstone and there are ferocious currents when the tide is on the ebb but none at other states of the tide.There is a separate tide section on this web site that lets you download tide details anywhere round the country. There is some bespoke tide planning software available, we recommend Bellfield, it is cheap and very user friendly. Please check the weather, not just on the day but for a few days leading up to your trip. Use the webcams also. This will save you many a wasted journey. Generally we need a settled period of a few days for the visibility to clear.You now know when to dive.

It is recommended that when you dive somewhere new you get an area orientation with a diver experienced at the site, this is not always possible. If you don't take this advice it is really important that you plan your dive thoroughly with your buddy and that this plan is conservative and well within your limits, discussing all aspects from entry to exit. You now know how you are going to dive.

Remember plan your dive and dive your plan. Stick to what you have agreed with your buddy to reduce misunderstandings. Finally log your dive, take photos, make sketches and record all necessary detail to help you return to the site again at a later date.

If in doubt email the club and ask for advice