For more information, please contact the trip organiser.

Plymouth,  Fri 26th - Sun 27th March. 

Open to all Levels.  Organiser - Keith

Portland (for Keith’s 50th Birthday!!)  Fri 23rd - Sun 25th April

Open to all Levels, organiser - Keith.

Dive Fest Cornwall - Fri 30th April - Mon 3rd May (May Day Bank Holiday)

BSAC!  Fun Weekend

Lynn Pennisula - Fri 7th May - Sun 9th May

1×30m dive, other 2 or 3 dives likely to be at OD level.  Organiser - Hannah

Weymouth - Sat 29th - Mon 31st May (Late May Bank Holiday)

DL and above. Dives are up to 50m.  Organiser - Sally

Scapa - Sat 26th June - Sat 3rd July

SD plus.  Organiser - Tony O’Connor

BBQ Weekend Location to be decided - Fri 16th July - Sun 18th July

All levels.  organiser - Hannah & Gwen

Egypt -  July / Aug 2010.  Organisers - Steve P & Alan

Ireland - Fri July 30th - Sun August 1st

All levels.  Organiser - Alan

Weymouth - Sat 14th - Sun 15th August

DL & above. Dives are up to 50m.  Organiser - Sally

West Wales (Dale) - Fri 27th - Mon 30th August (Bank Holiday weekend)

All levels?, may be SD +.  Organiser - Gwen

Location to be arranged - Fri 17th - Sun 19th September

All levels?, may be SD +.  Organisers - Keith & Gwen

Plymouth - Fri 1st - Sun 3rd October

All Levels.  Organiser - Keith

Hamatta (South Egypt).  Nov / Dec 2010.  

Organisers - Andy & John

Jan 2011. Mexico.

Organiser Mark Jordan 

Please contact Keith for further information

Fantastic news for the club, we have received a grant from Sport England to buy much needed pool equipment for training purposes.

BY ALAN FLEMING…

Having just joined the club in April 09, this was my first club trip with Sutton, having just crossed over from being a ‘Padi’ qualified diver to begin my training with this Bsac club. I had been diving for ten years, but always ventured abroad to dive with other Padi divers in warm waters..

I had known several of the Sutton Bsac club for some years and at last made the cross over and my son Jack (15yrs) had joined too.

This was my 5th time visiting Sharm to dive but the first time with a well established Bsac club such as Suttoncoldfield. I was with a group of very experienced divers organised by Steve including members such as Keith (Diving Officer) and Gwen, Tony, Andy, Bill, and Hannah.

Steve had organised our trip to include diving with the ‘Marina Divers’ situated at White Knight Bay, by the Corcorde El Salem Hotel. ‘Frank Mergil’ the owner of the Dive company, had decided that he would venture on a week’s diving with us to keep his hand in and freshen up his skills. Frank has owned the company for 12 years after he retired from being a helicopter pilot in the American Air Force and he hailed from New York but was well settled in Sharm with a well established diving business. The locals told us that there isn’t anywhere around Sinai dive sites that Frank did not know. He is a very well respected Diver, and is well liked by the local Egyptians. We were lucky to have such a knowledgeable diver guiding us and giving his vast experiences to us.

We had the exclusive use of one of several large spacious dive boats owned by Marina Divers, and we were to have at least one night sleeping on board on a safari to HMS Thistlegorm. The Five man crew included a ‘padi’ dive master guide, Mohammed Tarek from Cairo.

Having settled in and beginning to acclimatise to water temperature 27-28 degrees, and daily temperatures of 35+, the diving began.

We had around 15 dives throughout the week mostly reef dives including two night dives, three wreck dives, drift, wall, with shore  and cave diving. Most divers used Nitrox daily and the equipment was well maintained. Most of us only took Mask, fins, regs, and computers, and a shortie 3mm wetsuit.

Most of the dives were around 30 metres maximum allowed by group briefings but there was opportunity for members to wallow along around 40 metres +. Visibility was always excellent 30-40 metres +

The drift dives were quite sedate and we experienced one dive with a very mild ‘washing machine’ effect.

We dived at the following popular sites; White Knight, Gordons reef in Tiran straights, Shark reef, Yolander reef, Ras Zatar, Ras Um Cid, the WW11 wreck HMS Dunraven, Stingray station, Suez-sinai, HMS Thistlegorm,Jacksons reef, Woodhouse reef, with night dives at Ras Mohammed park and White Knight. (The organiser Steve was given a fright on the night dive at White knight when an Octopus grabbed and slithered up his arm ! )

All the dives were very enjoyable with no drama’s, very well briefed, easy diving with most dives ranging to the hour + timings. Safety stops were fantastic hanging around 5 metres looking at brilliant corals and an abundance of sea life. The range of fish and life was very diverse including, sea horse, octopus, moray, turtles, shoals of trevallies, jacks, tuna, bass and very large Napoleon wrasse and grouper. Divers Andy and Bill took lots of fantastic photographs.

All in all a very well organised club trip with excellent guides and boats, to one of the top 5 dive destinations in the world.

Suttoncoldfield club will be on their travels again soon and hope to venture back to the red sea.

Safe Diving…Alan    

 The first hurdle was the drive up to Scotland.  This was tackled by people travelling up in pairs in order to share the driving.  I went up with Keith, Gwen & Bob and (once the van was fixed – the less said the better) we headed up and stayed over in Scrabster on the Friday.

 On the island we stayed in the Orca hotel, as our group filled the hotel it basically meant that we could make it home away from home.  A kitty was set up for food etc and as Steve had a bad cold he became head chef for the week!

 Now to the diving…

 Our dive boat was the MV Jean Elaine, Andy is the Captain and Mark was his First Mate!  The boat has a great set up as you basically set your kit up on day 1 and then never have to move it (other than to go diving!) for the rest of the week.  Air was free and Nitrox was £5 per fill. 

 Most groups ease into their weeks diving by starting on the Karlshruhe but there were a few dive boats on the wreck so Andy took us to the Dresden for our first dive and the Karlshruhe for the 2nd dive. 

Most of the wrecks in Scapa Flow are shot and it is a straight forward descent down to the wreck.  Once we surfaced you never had to wait long for Andy to come and pick you up and once on deck you had barely taken your reg out and Mark was ready with a warming hot drink for you!

The Brummer, my max depth was 34.0m was our first dive of day 2, I was buddied with Guy and lead dive.  Whilst Guy was paying little attention to me (so to demonstrate that you sometimes need to be firm with a buddy) I saw a seal! Woop Woop – it was a great moment.  After the dive Andy said that the seal has become a regular sighting on the Brummer so has possibly taken up residence!  

The FY2 & YC21 (barge) was the 2nd dive of the day.  There was a gun almost at the end of the shot line on the FY2, but you are best following the line to the barge and 2 guns stick out of the hold & is a great sight.  You can also do a nice little swim through on the barge.

 The Kronprinz & Karlshruhe were the two wreck choices for day 3.  When we did the Karlshruhe we went around the hull side & there was a random toilet on the sea bed!!! 

Over lunch we went to the museum in Lyness, which is a very informative and makes you feel very humble as well as being great full to all the service men and women.

Day 5 saw us doing the Coln & V83.  I had been waiting for the Coln all week and it definitely lives up to the rating the Wreck Tours and books on Scapa Flow give it.  There were so many guns on the wreck and I was finally getting the hang of spotting them and was beginning to wonder how I had missed them on the first few dives!! 

The last day we dived the Coln and the Brummer, two wrecks the group had thoroughly enjoyed during the week.  We were finally ‘allowed’ a girly diving day.  Gwen & I were buddied on the first dive, with Dawn joining us on the second.  This time when we did the Coln we went to the Stern where the guns are very impressive.  The last dive of the week was on the Brummer & with the seal making another appearance it certainly finished the week off with a bang! 

Scapa might be quite far from Birmingham but definitely worth the effort.  

Watch this space for more details!  Sure to be a fun night!