The East Anglia coast incorporates the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, from the Wash in the north to the Thames Estuary in the South. There is a commonly held view that East Anglia diving is dark, difficult, stormy and uninteresting. However, if this was the case, why would John Liddiard write an article for Diver magazine (October 2001) called "Easy Anglia" in which he describes a week-long trip of great diving in good weather conditions?

Why isn't diving this part of the country as popular as, say, the south coast? There is certainly little by way of reference material about the region. UK dive guides are conspicuous by their absence. Does it have something to do with access to this part of the country? Travelling east-west across England is more difficult (despite the A14) than a similar length north-south journey. Maybe it's because there aren't any hills or mountains, so the landscape can be seen as a bit boring. What does the region have to offer the visiting diver, his family and friends?

East Anglia looks towards the North Sea, which is some 80 miles or so wide, and has diveable depths for most of it. There are major cities - Norwich (Norfolk), Ipswich (Suffolk) and Chelmsford (Essex) - each with their own attractions - see http://www.visitnorwich.co.uk/Links.jsp or http://www.visit-suffolk.org.uk/new/frames.htm for up to date information. This is a major holiday area, with coastal towns providing accommodation and services for visiting divers, from Kings Lynn in the north, via places like Cromer, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Felixstowe and Clacton-on-Sea to Southend-on-Sea at the mouth of the Thames in the south. See www.northnorfolk.co.uk and www. norfolkcoast.co.uk

The major roads into the region are the A14, from the Midlands and the A11 (to Norfolk) and A12 (to Essex and Suffolk) from London and the South. Access from the north is less straightforward, and involves the A1(M) and/or the A17, across country to Kings Lynn.

When you arrive, there are a number of established dive sites including:

The Kylemore (53 08.3N 01 14.8E). This is a paddle steamer, built in 1897, which was bombed by German aircraft in World War 2 and now lies in 23 metres off the Norfolk coast. You can launch from Cromer, Blakeney, Morston or Wells. Further details can be found at http://www.divernet.com/wrecks/wtour410702.htm

HMS Umpire (53 09.0N 00 06.1E). This British submarine lies in 18 metres, some 15 miles off the north Norfolk coast. The dive is suitable for all qualifications and further details can be found at http://www.divernet.com/wrecks/wtour550903.htm

If you would rather not venture too far from the coast, how about shore diving around Cromer Pier? The remains of an old church are amongst the finds in the area. Alternatively, you could try The Vera, a wreck off Cley beach, which is visible at low tide.

For those travelling to the region, information from local dive clubs is always a useful source of knowledge. There is a list of East Anglia branches on the BSAC members' website at http://bsac.org/branches/eastern.htm

When planning your trip, information regarding weather and sea conditions can be found at http://www.ybw.com/weather/home.html and http://www.btx.co.uk/buoys.htm

For offshore sites slack water is generally about 3 hours after high or low water. Tides can be fierce and the slack window can be short. Coastal sites generally are less sensitive to tidal flow. For tide table information, go to http://www.norfolkbroads.com/water/tides.htm

Dive Shops, Operators and Air
Norfolk Dive Charters / Dive Boat Mayflower 01328 821192
Dive Norfolk / Dive Boat Desert Moon 01604 407611
Norwich Scuba Centre 01603 440900
AquaImage (Norwich) 01603 788407
Kings Watersports (near Lowestoft) 01502 730182

Maps and Charts
Ordnance Survey Landranger Maps (1:150,000) 131,132, 133, 134, 156, 169, 168, 178
Admiralty Charts: 108 (Approaches to the Wash), 106 (Cromer to Smiths Knoll), 105 (Cromer Knoll and the Outer Banks)

UK DIVE GUIDES Books and guides to help you plan, and to take with you - buy on-line.

©2005 BSAC |  Members Home Page |  Member Services |  Technical Services |  BSAC News