West Bay (June 2024) Trip Report

With the weather looking good and favourable tides, on the 28 June 2024 Reading BSAC headed down to West Bay, Dorset, UK for another weekend of diving with one of the club RIBs.

We started the weekend with diving the famous Ailsa Craig wreck. The Alisa Craig was launched on 6 September 1906 and sunk on the 15 April 1918, when she was torpedoed. She now lies in depth of the seabed in 35m. Unfortunately, on this dive the visibility did not match the sunshine and calm sea’s above. However, we managed to explore some parts of the interesting wreck.

After the dive we headed back to the harbour and enjoyed some lunch from one of the many food huts in West Bay.

The second dive was another wreck, the Baygitano. She is a steam-powered collier built in 1905 and 99 meter long. Like the Alisa Craig she was torpedoed towards the end of the First World War. Today it remains lay scattered at a depth of about 20 meters. As we headed down to the depth of the Baygitano we were greeted by large schools of fish. Fish life was in fact in abundance across the whole wreck making for a fantastic dive.

After the days diving, we headed to the local pub to enjoy the sunshine. Many divers stayed in the caravan park which is very conveniently located next to the harbour.

The next day we headed to West Tenants reef which covers a large area of rocky ground and gullies. This was a new dive for the club, and we were pleasantly surprised. Crabs, lobsters, starfish, wrasse, pollock, nudibranchs, bass, blennies, gobies and Anemones were spotted by most. The highlight of the dive was a rock plateau covered in pink fan corals.

The afternoon dive site was Sawtooth ledges. This reef has a very jagged appearance, with deep gullies and sandy seabed. The site was noticeable full of sunset corals. Fish life and scallops were seen to thrive in great numbers. Depth range 20-28 m.

Scuba diving in West Bay on the Dorset coast, truly offers a unique blend of historical exploration and natural beauty. Whether you are diving you are exploring fascinating wrecks, or discovering marine life in rocky reefs, West Bay provides memorable underwater adventures for divers of all levels.

Dive buddy

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