20th September 2008 The concrete slip at Eyemouth harbour is one that requires a degree of careful planning if the intention is to launch and recover the boat in the same day, for the end of the slip drops away to the harbour bottom in a series of short sharp steps, making the recovery of […]

26 Aug 2008 The Richard de Larrinaga, a 5358 ton steamship was attacked and severely damaged by German aircraft on the 12 th May 1941 whilst she was on passage from the Tyne for St Lawrence. She was subsequently beached and abandoned in 8 metres of water some 500 metres off Trow rocks apparently following

17th-22nd August 2008 Inspired by an article on diving the green waters of the Shetlands in DIVE magazine, eight intrepid members of Tyneside 114 set forth upon the five-hour drive to Aberdeen ferry port. On arrival, dive kit was quickly loaded aboard a pre-booked wheeled trolley before boarding the waiting ferry. It’s an all night

17th June 2008 We arrived at Seahouses having past a steady stream of towed RIBs heading south down the A1, no doubt on their way home after a great days diving at the Farnes. Boarding the MV Glad Tidings VII for some evening diving, we headed out to the Farnes in the smug knowledge that

17th June 2008 Despite a somewhat overcast evening with the odd spot of rain, we had a full turnout of 12 divers for the Tuesday evening dive from the MV Spellbinder. With a brisk South Westerly breeze but a relatively flat sea, Spellbinder headed up the coast towards Blyth to dive the wreck of the

10th June 2008 With a stiff northerly breeze blowing, dive sites off the Tyne were inevitably going to be limited. The huge granite piers at the Tyne entrance however do have the advantage of providing shelter to some of the dive sites that lay in the lee of the piers when the wind blows from

8th June 2008 With high spring tides and a calm mirror like sea, conditions were ideal to locate and dive the legendry North Goldstone reef. This large rock lies out in exposed open water, between Lindisfarne and the Farnes Islands. On low water slack this site is easily located as the jagged top of the

May 2008 by Andy Hunt After last year’s successful club expedition to Islay, the aim for the 2008 season was to find another remote area of the country where diving of a more exploratory and adventurous nature could be conducted. Like the earlier Islay trip of 2007, this latest expedition was to be a self

11th May 2008 by Richard Booth The weekend had commenced with glorious weather on the Saturday, with bright sunshine and a flat glass like sea. Hopes were therefore high for a similar day on the Sunday. We woke instead to a dull day with low cloud and misty conditions restricting surface visibility. Somewhat optimistically we

3rd May 2008 Conditions for the bank holiday weekend were not brilliant with brisk South Easterly winds predicted for most of the weekend. This proved to be the case for the Saturday when Seawitch was launched at Seahouses. The weather conditions inevitably greatly limited the possible dive sites that could be safely dived. This situation

28th April 2008 By Richard Booth At last a break in the recent weather which offered the realistic chance of getting out and diving the Farnes. With a stiff South Westerly breeze, we new that the choice of good dive sites would be limited, but nevertheless five club members headed up to Seahouses and launched

24th February 2008 By Richard Booth So far the start of 2008 has been dominated by strong winds and big sea’s, resulting in less than ideal diving conditions off the North East coast. Capernwray and Ellerton have their advantages when the sea is too rough to dive, but there is a limit to the fun

6th January 2008 The 2008 diving season is officially open with unintentional but internationally synchronised icebreaker dives. Andy Hunt and Tony Horsefall bravely set off across the frozen grass for a dip in Ellerton, (a bit desperate I know), a freshwater ‘pit’ in North Yorkshire. Gordon Lambert on the other hand chose to open the2008

13th to 17th December 2007 A hardy group of members ventured north for a long weekends diving off the North West coast of Scotland aboard the M/V Elizabeth G. Driving up on the Thursday, we arrived and loaded our kit aboard this 23 metre charter boat tied up at the railway pier in Oban. For

August 2007 by Andy hunt The first Tyneside 114 Oban trip of 2007 was all set to go: Boats ready, transport allocated, itinery worked out, weather forecast looking good and shopping completed. Then disaster! Our beloved DO knackers his back and is completely incapacitated. A problem normally arises at some point in a trip but

28th August 2007 Only four divers turned up this Tuesday evening, with some of the regular attendees being away on family holidays making the most of the bank holiday break. On the plus side however, two of the group were brand new to the Tuesday evening dive programme. Indeed for Peter Lumley, recently returned from

26th August 2007 Conditions proved ideal for a successful shore dive at Beadnel this last August Bank holiday weekend. For once the sun shone, and a light westerly breeze ensured a calm sea and reasonable underwater visibility. The combination of these conditions proved ideal for a gentle dive that allowed Peter Lumley to try out

12th August 2007 With the launch facilities reopened at Beadnel under new management, it seemed a good time for a trip out to the Farnes. The first pleasant surprise was that the launch fee, including tractor launch and recovery has dropped in price to £20. Parking in the council run car park however is still

5th August 2007 In bright sunshine and with clear water lapping against the side of the St Abbs harbour walls, the club RIB Seawitch was launched in the full expectation of a good days diving. Once aboard the first wave headed up the dramatic coastline past the St Abbs lighthouse to the first dive planned

17th July 2007 Initially, conditions for a dive did not exactly look very promising with heavy rain sheeting down and lightning flashes erupting across a dark foreboding sky. Despite this weather seven hardy souls changed into their drysuits before embarking aboard the MV Spellbinder for an evening dive off the Tyne. As we headed out

  July 2007 Planning club organised trips is never easy at the best of times; so looking for a destination which offers something new and different but is within the financial means of most club members is especially challenging to those individuals who find themselves unfortunate enough to be the designated organiser… Talk about the

7th July 2007 At last, the weather Gods were looking on us more kindly. For most of June and the early part of July, like the rest of the country the North East of England has experienced heavy rain and a mixture of northerly and on shore winds, all of which has conspired to make

12th and 19th June 2007 The last few months have seen unprecedented amounts of rain over the summer period. These unusual weather conditions have had an adverse effect upon our Tuesday night diving programme from the MV Spellbinder when usually diving conditions off the Tyne should be at their best. Indeed on a number of