The Tropical Jurassic Coast

With fortuitous timing, our weekend trip on the Wey Chieftain took place after one of the hottest spells in living memory meaning the sea was a positively Mediterranean 18 degrees. The viz, needless to say, remained stubbornly "British"...

We kicked off at the Black Hawk to find there were already 4 RIBs bobbing over it by the time we arrived. We "borrowed" a shot line from one of them and descended to discover divers almost outnumbering the fish. You could tell who'd just returned from the Red Sea trip from their contempt at the lamentable vis... The remaining three dives of the weekend were all drifts. The one on Sunday morning at Balaclava Bay was particularly memorable for the strong current pulling us along, the quantity of sea life, and - again - the wonderful temperatures.

Our visit also coincided with celebrations to mark 150 years of RNLI at Weymouth. Richard from the Wey Chieftain suggested we take part in a flotilla around Weymouth harbour and of course we readily agreed. We weren't the only ones and the number of boats - from RHIBs to "gin palaces" - which turned up to show their appreciation of the RNLI volunteers was wonderful to see and be a part of. As always Richard and Sue looked after us superbly. Although the dive sites may be familiar, experiencing them on a hard boat with a lift, kettle and head can sometimes make all the difference...

Report by David C and photos by Hardeep.

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