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65th Anniversary Year
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We headed out to Lower Loch Fyne for a couple of dives out of Portavadie. The surface conditions didn’t look all that promising, but once underwater we were treated to surprisingly good visibility — so much so that torches stayed off for most of the dives.
There was plenty of life about too. Highlights included two very large conger eels, a solid lobster, a handful of squat lobsters (including some very orange ones), brown crabs, and what we’re fairly sure were long-legged spider crabs making an appearance.
All in all, two really enjoyable dives and a great reminder of how much is going on beneath the surface in our local waters. Not bad for somewhere just a couple of hours from home.
Thank you John Kerr for taking us out in the Club boat and keeping us safe. We were treated to some EXCELLENT visibility below the waves.
Portavadie, Loch Fyne
by Don Milesh
11/04/2026
Easter Dive Trip to Bute
April 2026
by Don Milesh
A group of Clydebank Sub Aqua Club Ocean Divers, along with a couple of instructors, travelled across the Firth of Clyde to the Isle of Bute for a multi-day diving trip over the Easter weekend. This trip provided an excellent introduction to multi-day diving, giving our newer divers valuable experience ahead of the busy summer season.
Across several days, the group developed and applied a range of practical skills, including dive planning, boat preparation, boat diving, and cylinder filling. The format of diving, reviewing, and repeating allowed divers to quickly build confidence and competence.
The setting itself offered a notable change from the typical shore-based diving we usually do, with the scenery and conditions of a Scottish west coast island providing an ideal environment for both learning and enjoyment.
Marine life highlights included sea anemones in abundance and sightings of two octopuses, alongside a variety of other typical local species.
Overall, the trip was a highly successful blend of experience and exploration, and a strong step forward for the Ocean Divers as they prepare for the season ahead.
Ocean Divers Boat Dive Day
by Don Milesh
28/03/26
We kicked off the first boat diving of 2026 with a training-focused day for our new Ocean Divers along the north bank of Loch Fyne.
Diving sites included Kenmore Point, Adam’s Reef, and Stallion Rock, providing ideal conditions for introducing core boat diving skills while experiencing classic Scottish sea loch environments.
Marine life highlights included a large lobster, an impressively sized conger eel, and plenty of squat lobsters and hermit crabs across the sites. Kenmore Point also showed a significant amount of scattered marine debris, serving as a reminder of the ongoing need for responsible diving and conservation efforts.
The day wasn’t without its lessons. At an undisclosed location, a valuable (and slightly expensive) lesson was learned — sometimes experience comes at the cost of a new DSMB and Lomo reel.
Overall, a highly successful and rewarding start to the boat diving season, combining training, real-world experience, and some excellent diving.
Intrepid Clydebank members take to the water in early March for some BSAC Ocean Diver training activities. Perhaps you can guess the Dive Site!?
In February, Lee Tony Marsden, met up with diving friends from Wrexham Seals Diving Club, to explore the delights of Capernwray in Cumbria. The water was pretty chilly but the underwater visibility was amazing!!
Don Milesh writes; "In early February a handful of CSAC divers snuck away to Oban for a couple of dives with our friends at West Coast Diving on the SS Breda. Awesome to get some big-ish boat diving done on one of the big wrecks close-ish to home — perfect warm-up for the summer of diving ahead."
First Dive of 2026 for Cameron, Gordon, Jemma & David. Gordon says; "Fantastic choice to go to St Catherines, Loch Fyne. We've just had the pleasure of a seal visiting, a stunning octopus and Davie's Fantastic rolls and Sausages."
First Night Dive of Winter 2025
Photos by Jill Rollo/Mowatt
3 members of Clydebank Sub Aqua Club braved the very cold night of 20th November, to enjoy the first Clydebanksac Night dive of the winter season, since the clocks changed back to GMT. The party were Jill Rollo/Mowatt, Robert Winters and organiser David Ryrie.
The Dive site was St Catherines Seal Reef on Loch Fyne, meeting at about 7pm, after work. Jill came over from Arbroath, for goodness sake!! The air temperature was 1degree C as the 1st dive on the reef started around 7.30pm with a fair amount of life out and about, including a shoal of fish above the reef. Fortunately the water temperature was a balmy 9-12 degrees C, maximum depth 29metres and a 45 minutes duration with the underwater visibility in the darkness of around 2 to 3 metres. The chilly dive interval was passed trying to stay warm and have something to eat and a hot drink before finally entering the water for a 2nd dive to 22 metres for 44 minutes. It was around midnight when the long trek home started whilst most of the less hardy members of Clydebanksac were tucked up in bed.
Text: Keith Waugh
Red Sea Liveaboard
Story & Photos by David Richford
So it started with a WhatsApp message from Gordon Anderson in August 2024, for anyone interested in a week Liveaboard to the Red Sea next year, the trip would cover the Brothers/Daedalus and Elphinstone reefs. With viz at 20 metres plus, diving in a wet suit and water temperatures of 28 degrees, I was in.
The day had arrived, 4 October 2025, flying from Glasgow to Hurghada then a short over land journey to Port Ghalib where our home for the week was waiting, Sea Wolf Dominator.
Our itinerary was 17 dives, 3 dives a day for 5 days and 2 dives on the 6th day. Weather forecast was for some windy conditions; a slight adjustment was made to our destinations.
First day ropes off at 7am we headed for Abu Dahab IV for a shakedown dive to check weights and dive operations, a giant stride off the boat, weights checked l descended to find a Blue Spotted Ribbon-tail ray, then a Crocodile fish relaxing on the seabed, Lionfish, Masked Damselfish and Pufferfish, it was a great start to the week. After lunch we moved to Abu Dahab III where our 2nd dive and night dive would end our first day. With the last diver aboard, we started a 5 hour journey to Elphinstone reef, forecast was for some rough seas, so everyone hunkered down for the night.
Arriving at Elphinstone reef in the early hours, wakeup call was 6am for a 6.30am briefing onto to the Zodiacs and into the water for 7am, [Elphinstone reef south] No breakfast until after our first dive, as I descended, there at 30 meters I watched a Turtle having its breakfast!!! what a sight. On surfacing into 2 meter swells getting back onto the Zodiac was challenging. No finesse here, you where flung onboard, safely transported back to Sea Wolf for breakfast, 2nd dive at Elphinstone Reef North then 3rd dive at Ras Torombi.
The 3rd day brought us to Big Brother South once again first dive is before breakfast. A whale shark was spotted on this dive and 2x Large Morays in the rock face. 2nd dive on Big Brother west and the wreck Aida, 3rd dive Little Brother North. For the next day we move to Daedalus reef east which is a 10-hour sail away. Spending 2 days here we would spot a Hammerhead shark, Oceanic Whitetip shark and a Silky Shark, shoals of Trumpetfish and large Barracuda and the first time for me a Torpedo ray and Potato Grouper., leaving Daedalus behind we were heading to Marsa Shona. Here we would not disappoint with a turtle, Sting ray, Scorpion fish and Feather Tailed ray.
This week has been full of challenges and some great experiences, having Nitrox mixes of between 28%-30% l had to be aware of my depths. I would like to thank Gordon Anderson for organizing the trip, Regal dive/Emperor divers and the crew of the Sea Wolf Dominator.
Sound of Mull 2025
Story & Photos by Keith Waugh
The weather had been glorious for several days beforehand. So far, we’ve had an amazingly warm and dry summer, but would it hold out for the middle of August? Once again, members of Clydebank Sub Aqua Club and a few guests from elsewhere, were making their annual pilgrimage to Lochaline, on the Sound of Mull. Gordon Anderson had worked hard to get everything organised; booking the bunkhouses at “Highland Base Camp”, booking the boat “Peregrine” expertly skippered by Bodie, arranging transport and letting everyone know, particularly the newcomers, what to bring and what to expect in terms of diving. Fortune favoured the “bankies” and everything fell neatly in to place, particularly the weather. It was forecast to be absolutely glorious for the whole weekend.
We met at Highland Base Camp on Friday evening 15th August. About half of the party of 12 having had a dive at the Lochaline Cliff Face. The visibility was a little disappointing but nevertheless it was a good dive on this sheer cliff face, which drops, in places to about 60 metres. We came across a fairly large lobster attempting to climb the wall. Good buoyancy control is rather important at this site. We all managed the dive before the tide turned to flood at 1700. You don’t dive the wall on a flood tide!!!
The Saturday plan was to dive the Hispania, followed by Sligneach Mor, an island in the entrance to Loch Sunnart. The down side was that it meant an 0700 “ropes off”!!!! Oh dear!!
We blearily made it on time and enjoyed a calm, sunny, wind free voyage up to the Hispania. This wreck is always spectacular with its covering of red seaweeds, yellow corals, orange anemones and resident Ballan wrasse and Pollock, but again the visibility was not all it could be. Not to worry, the cold water woke us up and we all had a great dive exploring the broken-up wreck and swimming through the tangled superstructure.
Onwards to Loch Sunnart with more calm sea and blue sky. On the way we had the great good fortune to come across a pod of about 8-10 Bottle-nose Atlantic Dolphins!! They were fantastic, swimming in our bow wave, with so little apparent effort. Oh! If only we could swim like that!!! This encounter was definitely one of the highlights of the weekend.
Arriving at Sligneach Mor, we kitted up and dropped down the cliff. The site is similar to Auliston Point, just to the south of us at the corner of Loch Sunnart and was a new site for most of us. Underwater visibility improved as we moved west along the northern wall. The cliff overhung dramatically in places and there were countless crevices and gullies for fish to hide. Definitely worth further exploration.
Another calm and relaxing trip down the Sound of Mull in the late afternoon sunshine eventually found us a short distance from Lochaline, and another brilliant encounter with the resident White-tailed Sea Eagles. What a day!!
And what an evening, with 12 Pizzas on order at the Lochaline Social Club. A small amount of alcohol was also consumed (plus the malt whisky!), BUT…….. since it was an even earlier start on Sunday morning than it had been on Saturday, it was an early-ish night to bed for an 0645 “ropes off”.
Another glorious Day on the Sound of Mull greeted 12 rather tired divers. Not to worry, we could relax on the boat and enjoy the early morning sunshine, whilst Bodie took us up to the Calve island Cliff Face for our 1st dive of the day. Again a dramatic wall dropping to infinity with plenty still life and a reasonable number of fish. It was a bit crowded to start with, as 12 divers leapt off the boat, but we soon spread out and gave each other space.
Our final dive took us, no less, across the calm sea to the bottom end of the Isle of Coll and the Tapti. It sank just off Soa island on the east side of Coll in 1951. She is now quite well broken up, covered in soft corals, anemones and seaweed and is a safe haven for Pollock, Ballan and Cuckoo wrasse. I’m afraid that I’m old enough to have first dived Tapti in 1969. She was very much an intact ship back then, but as always happens, time and the sea has taken its toll on this very popular shipwreck.
After this last dive, a 4 hour cruise lay ahead to get us back to Lochaline. Nothing can beat the spectacular west of Scotland island scenery when the weather gods are on our side. The Ardnamurchan peninsular, Rum, Eigg and Muck lay ahead of us, with Coll to our west and the Treshnish isles to our south-east. Eventually we reached the still waters of the Sound of Mull. It would not be long now until we started down the road to the Corran ferry with a drive up through magnificent Glencoe, across the expanse of Rannoch Moor, the Black Mount and Strath Fillan and on to Loch Lomond side and the grid-locked traffic to the south of Luss.
Never mind, it was a small price to pay for what had been a fantastic weekend for the 12 members of the party. A VERY BIG thank you to Gordon Anderson for organising the trip and keeping this rabble together.
The Group was Gordon Anderson, David Richford, Jemma Anderson, Andrew Sinclair, Peter Gunn, John McNealis, Robert Winters, Shona Winters, Keith Waugh, with guests Nigel Spike, Paul Doyle & Eddie Adie.
Gordon must have had fun organising the trip because he is doing it all over again next year!!!!! You’d better start arranging the weather!