Malcolm Nobbs - September 2008

After diving in Yorkshire the previous day, we made an early morning start and our first priority upon reaching Eyemouth was… breakfast. Rick however was quick to decline an offer of a Scottish breakfast…as it came complete with haggis. Wimp! Mind you so did I. Suitably refuelled with an English breakfast, we made our way to Gunn Green Basin in Eyemouth and the extremely friendly and helpful AquaStars Dive Centre. AquaStars is located in a new harbour building within easy walking distance of some superb shore dives. There we met Pete, Operations Director, Danny, Training Director and Jacqui, the Financial Director. Although we had not spent any money with AquaStars, Rick and I were shown the nearby Ness End Reef and advised how best to dive the site. Beginning our dive shortly after low tide, the gulley entrance to Ness End Reef was still slippery with sea water left from high tide. For Rick and I, perhaps not the most co-ordinated of people, this was an accident waiting to happen! So being cautious, we first carried our cameras and fins to the dive site entry before returning to my car, kitting up and then making our way back down the concrete walkway to the waters edge where a 4 metre drop-off awaited us. The water was 13º, definitely the coldest temperature I will dive in without a drysuit. Yes…I was wearing a wetsuit. The remarkably clear visibility in the gulley shallows gave way to a slightly milky visibility once Rick and I had finned out from the gulley. But compared to the murky Kentish water I’m used to, it seemed crystal clear. A surprisingly strong current began to sweep us away from the gulley. So still in a cautious mood, we dropped down onto the seabed and quite literally crawled back against the current towards the vicinity of the gulley entrance. I had hoped to see Wolfish but had to settle instead for Common Lobsters, Squat Lobsters, Blennies, Gobies, Hermit Crab, Edible Crabs, Velvet Swimming Crabs and Sand Eels. Back at AquaStars we asked what the likelihood of seeing Wolfish was. I was surprised to learn that they migrate from Norway to Eyemouth around May every year with the majority returning to Norway around mid August although a few may still be around in late August and throughout September.

After a night in Edinburgh with my son, David, Rick and I returned to Eyemouth. We had planned to dive a loch or a shore dive elsewhere in Scotland before travelling to Gwynedd in Wales to dive there. But we had been so impressed by the diving in Eyemouth and the friendliness of AquaStars Dive Centre that we changed our plans to squeeze in two more dives. The air temperature was 8º, the skies overcast and with a cold breeze, even a hot breakfast did not seem to warm us up. Rick and I sat in my car with the heating full on and the engine off, slowly running the car battery down. The overcast weather gave way to blue skies and sunshine and the air temperature gradually rose…and my car battery died! To make the most of our dives we joined in two Aquastars guided dives led by Richy Reed. In the haste of transferring our equipment from my now immobile car to the AquaStars truck, Rick left his dive hood behind. Not ideal in 13º water. After a short dive briefing from Richy at Ness End Reef, we dropped down from the surface. Due to the state of the tides, the visibility was not quite as good as the previous day and unfortunately the current was too strong for Richy to take us to a reef just offshore where we might have seen a few Wolfish that had not yet returned to Norway. For the next dive Richy took us to Rum Fauds Bay close to Ness End Reef where for the second dive running he patiently pointed out local sea life to Rick and I. And Rick spotted an Octopus in the kelp…but did not show me! Back at the dive centre, the AquaStars staff kindly jump-started my car so that Rick and I could be on our way to Wales. I assume “kindly”. Maybe they were just relived to see the back of us! If so, they are likely to be disappointed as Rick and I agreed that we simply must return to Eyemouth to dive with them again.