Hi all!

[Irishdiver]

Thanks to you all for such a warm welcome. Great to be in touch with so many divers from all over the world!

I've already discovered one or two Irish divers through the search button on this OTW board, but I'm keen to learn about how things may be done differently in other parts, so I'll keep surfing and beg your indulgence if I post the occasional stupid question - hey, it's the best way for everybody to learn!

Dive often and dive safe everyone.

 

[detox]

Wow ireland huh? Sounds cold up there. Do you dive up around there much or do you travel to dive. I know nyc is nasty and the dives around LI are pretty rough I gather. Not certified yet so one day I can confirm that.

 

[Irishdiver]

Hi Detox!
You'll be glad to hear that some of the best diving in Europe is just off the west coast of Ireland - in the north Atlantic. There are plenty of other excellent dive locations around the Irish coast, with the exception of the east (where I'm based, wouldn't you know) because viz is usually atrocious, no matter what the weather. We dive quarries or lakes in the winter time.

Now, I know that I'm probably biased because I'm from here, but if you're into reefs and fish life, Ireland is definitely the place to be. The colours aren't as bright as the tropics and the viz isn't as good, but it's challenging and rewarding diving all the way down to 40m.

As for sea temperatures, it gets down to around 4C in winter and up as high as 12C in the summer. That makes it a little chilly at this time of year, but that's why we dive dry. We keep the semi-dry for diving in summer or snorkelling in the winter time. Quarries and lakes can be down at 2C in the winter - you can dive them, but you'd better come prepared for the cold!

Dive often, dive safe

 

[annie]

Greetings Irishdiver

I think I'm the only other one here but haven't done a search. I'm up in Donegal at the moment but will be moving to Dublin soon and hope to join a club there this summer! How many clubs are there in Dublin do you reckon? Are they all CFT?
I have done some great diving around south Donegal and also in Clare. It was lovely and am looking forward to it again. I really want to make a few island trips out west this summer.

best, annie

 

[Irishdiver]

Hey Annie, how's it going?

I've dived out of Malin Beg - beautiful spot, but a bit remote - and other club dives have been to Killybegs and John's Point. We're heading to Mullaghmore early in the season, hopefully, and we'll be off to Achill for a week away. Other trips this year include Inis Boffin, Hook Head, and Valentia. How long you diving and who are you with? And have you done a dive with the Clare dolphin yet?

There's lots of CFT clubs in Dublin and the main PADI diving (I think, because I haven't done any) is done through Oceantec in Dun Laoghaire or Great Outdoors in the city centre. I'm sure there are others.
The CFT website is here
or visit us at this address

 

[annie]

Grand and yourself. I haven't dived out west half as much as I'd like. I've been at Mullaghmore, St John's Point, Killary, Kilkee in Clare, and a bit down in Caherdaniel in Kerry. I can't wait to go to the islands. No I've never seen the Clare dolphin but have heard fantastic tales from divers who have met him at very close quarters out at Inis Meain I think it was.

I've been diving since March 2000 when I did my OW with ScubaDiveWest at Killary (chilly). I'm not with a club at the moment, I've just come back from a year's travelling - diving in Western Australia and Indonesia. Absolutely wonderful. I'll be very pleased to start diving here again though. Looking forward.

Just have to get my gear sorted out and join a club! Persuade some of these CFT people to take on a PADI diver!

A

 

[Irishdiver]

Western Oz and Indonesia, huh? Sounds tough. How can you even contemplate getting back into the Irish Sea after that?

I dived Killary - fed the congers, but boy was it cold! Think it was November a few years back. Fed the congers in Rathlin Island too before Tommy Cecil died...now that was a dive!

If you haven't dived Boffin, you haven't lived. It's a magical place!

If I'm not mistaken, there are equivalency certs for PADI divers entering CFT...just have to make sure you were trained right!

Don't know if you tried the club link in my last post, but it's now fixed. Always had a problem with these damned codes! Give us a shout if you're down Wicklow way!

 

[annie]

I forgot all about the congers. I remember lobsters and big crabs though . .didn't see many of those while I was away. It'll be cold but I reckon I'll be acclimatised by the time I get in the water. Indonesia was no picnic. Never in my life have i experienced currents like that. Now I just have to get used to the cold and bad vis again. Oh and the crabs. Big spider crabs - Kilkee has them in abundance. I can't wait! See you down Wicklow some time - what's the diving like there?

 

[Irishdiver]

Don't get too excited now! As you might have seen from my first post, the Irish Sea is cold, shallow, and viz is poor all year round. On the plus side, we swim with seals regularly, we're only 70 miles from Hook Head which is a stupendous dive, and all the challenging diving in cold, dark water will prepare you for virtually anything the sea can throw at you.

We dive Wicklow Head under the light house, all along the Wicklow coast, and Greystones occasionally. The club is taking delivery of a new RIB next month, so that will increase the range of sites available to us and we're planning to dive a couple of wrecks we haven't been on before.

As for the currents around Indonesia...we dived the Skelligs off Valentia last year and the currents were wicked! Even our most experienced divers had never seen anything like them before, and we had dived the Skelligs previously. But they were brilliant dives. We also dived the Fastnet Rock last year out of Baltimore in dead calm water...it was amazing!

 

[Conor]

Just thought I should say hello as I'm Irish and a diver, but live in England now and have never dived in Ireland, so don't know if I qualify. I come from Derry originally but spent a few years in Cork before coming over here.