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elcome to the East Coast
In these pages I have chosen to omit all the usual information about position, launching, slack etc. necessary as everyone else seems to have written about them before. I have chosen to concentrate more on my experiences of these dives & give you a brief insight as what you might expect. I have given the best visibility & deepest that I have had on these dive but it is not necessary the maximum, all sites are in alphabetical order.
AVONDALEPARK….57m
This Canadian Liberty ship was sunk the day after WW2 ended by a U-boat, which had not received notification. Lying 2miles South of The Isle of May in the Firth of Forth she lies with a list to port, I have only dived her in visibility of up to 3m so I found it very hard to work out.
BAKU STANDARD ….55 m The wreck of this tanker lies off Gourdon in 58m with the deck at 52m. This is a vitually intact wreck with torpedo damage just forward of the bridge section, it boasts a most impressive stern gun which points skyward. The decking has rotted away in this area, which allows access to what I believe to be accommodation quarters. Dropping over the stern the top of the rudder sits at 54m going down to 58m. Not a lot has been written about this wreck as it is only rarely dived by local divers . With greatly varing visibility, anything from less than1m to 20m she lies in a very exposed tidal area making it a little awkward to dive with not too long a slack.
CAIRNAVON….20m
Not much I can say about this one but it had to be done once, maybe I just got it on a bad day as visibility was less than 2m. Lying a couple of mile South of Peterhead all that remains are bits of flattened plate covered in several inches of silt.
CATTERLINE ISLAND….16m
Situated 5 miles South of Stonehaven it is usually done as a shore dive, but involves a 20minute fin out this is quite a nice dive with loads of life hiding in the numerous cracks. Lobsters, ling, congers, angler fish & all sorts of crabs are usually in attendance, you often see lots of seals on the surface here but only occasionally do you see them underwater. Visibility of about 6m is considered quite good here.
THE CLINT….24m
Lying a couple of mile off Montrose I had heard good reports on this wreck but I found it to be no more exciting than an empty hull lying on its side can get. Perhaps that might be due to the 1-2m visibility we had the day we dived it. The nearest slip is Gourdon so it takes a while to get there & costs a fair bit in fuel, in my opinion it’s not really worth the bother, but in saying that I have been back to dive it again but we were blown out.
COUNTESS OF ABERDEEN….20m
A shore dive at Cove on the south side of Aberdeen with easy access but renowned for poor visibility, 3m at best, however it is still worth a poke around, I’m told portholes were recovered in 1995 after the winter storms. It ran aground in 1894 in thick fog, now it consists of no more than flattened plates scattered over a wide area with most of the wreckage around 14m.
CRAWTON REEF….22m
I’ve had some really good dives here; there is usually an abundance of life. Much of the reef is around 16m with crevices down to 22m. Visibility can get as good as 8m & if there is a current running it can be very exciting especially in poor visibility with large rocks coming at you out of nowhere. Close into shore you can find lots of life in the numerous cracks. We always do it as a boat dive but I have heard tales of shore diving it in days gone by, but not something I would recommend. It is situated about 5 miles South of Stonehaven.
DUNDONNIE REEF….25m
A very nice dive a few miles South of Peterhead. Lots of life to be seen here including the odd curious seal. Lots of nice gullies to shelter in from the current, which can get fairly strong, round the headland
GARRON POINT….14m
Situated about 1mile North of Stonehaven there is always a good selection of marine life here, including seals, visibility can be a bit indifferent so expect 5m on a good day.
SS ISLAND….21m
A well broken up wreck on the East Coast of the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth. It is easily found as part of her is visible stranded on the rocks, not a terrific dive but the visibility can be very good here for the east coast, 10m+. Lots of brittle stars are to be found here.
MURIEL....48m
This wreck of a collier torpedoed in 1918 lying in 50m 3miles off Peterhead is an excellent dive, I’ve had 15+m visibility & never worse than 8m & it has always been possible to dive without the need of a torch. It was found in September 1999 by Buchan Divers, it still has some portholes in place & still has artefacts scattered around. From the boilers back it is intact but the decks have collapsed, it is 48m inside the wreck with the very impressive stern gun standing well proud at around 42m. Forward of the boilers it is flattened but I believe the bows are intact but I have not been forward of the engine & boilers to see for myself. As this area is so greatly affected by strong currents it is very limiting for convenient times to dive, I am looking forward to the next time the tides & weather are right with great enthusiasm.
Stern Gun on The Muriel
NORTH NESS….20m
On the NE corner of the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth playful seals are everywhere. Lots of fin nibbling which can keep you occupied the whole dive. Good visibility for the East Coast, 10m+.
PRIMROSE….32m
This steam trawler lies West of the South tip of the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth. It is not what you would call intact but it still has its ship like appearance as opposed to a pile of flattened plates and it is covered in soft corals making it a very pleasurable dive. Right in the middle is the boiler, which stands up as the highest point of the wreck at around 28m. You can easily dive the whole wreck in one dive & a seal colony resides on the island so it is not unexpected to see one or two.
TAURUS…. 52m
This impressive wreck lying off Gourdon was bombed in 1941 & sank whilst in tow. Lying on an even keel in 52m it is fairly well intact. The bridge section rises to 39m & deckhouse above the engine room to 42m. Aft of this deckhouse it gets a little tangled up & hard to imagine its former glory, until you see the stern section which lies almost vertical on its port side. This is a cracking dive, unfortunately it is in a very exposed tidal area making it a little awkward to dive with not too long a slack. The visibility can vary greatly here, but when it is nice it is an awesome dive
TREBARTHA….13m
Lying 1mile south of Aberdeen this is a fairly big wreck, which is flattened, but worth a dive even if it is very silty, 3-4m can be had. I have done it as a shore dive but it involves about a 20-30minute surface swim plus a scramble down & up a steep rocky slope if you get back to your entry point & unfortunately I have had to climb a rockface in full kit to get back to the car park as we took a wrong turn in between the islands as the tide had dropped & it looked totally different. This one is not for the faint hearted
ZITELLA….15m
Lying in a sheltered cove a couple of miles South of Peterhead there is only one decent sized piece of wreckage & a boiler to be found. It can be a decent enough dive in about 5m visibility but it can also be very poor.
This page is still under construction so look back soon & I may have some more sites listed.
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