North West England
An Introduction
The Wirral to the Solway Firth
The area of Coast between the Wirral to the Solway Firth is probably one of the least dived areas of the UK. The coastline is almost entirely composed of sandy beaches and mudflats, bounded by sand dunes and salt marsh, or in many places, by man-made structures. Almost everywhere the seabed slopes gently away from the coast meaning that opportunities for shore diving are virtually non-existent. The influence of several major rivers The Ribble, Mersey, and Dee and the huge mud flats of the - Solway Firth and, Morecambe Bay mean that large amounts of sediment are deposited into the Irish Sea. Consequently the visibility close inshore is normally poor, and the seabed uninteresting. The majority of diving in this area is at Inland sites, but it is possible to dive some good offshore wrecks in Liverpool Bay and The Isle of Man offers some great diving with the possibility of seeing Basking Sharks in the summer months.
A tidal range of up to ten metres in this area presents divers with another challenge to be overcome. Many of the ports and harbours either become dry at low water or require entry and exit via locks. This can often mean access is only possible for a couple of hours either side of high water. For RHIBs and smaller boats, beach launching is possible at places like Lytham and St Bees. However a trip of 15 -20 miles offshore is required to reach the better wrecks. This combination of adverse circumstance means that the diving industry is under developed in the area. There are hard boats at Liverpool, Barrow and Whitehaven whose websites say they take divers, but they are principally angling boats. In reality the wrecks of Liverpool bay are probably more easily dived from the charter boats running from Anglesey in North Wales.
In the South of the region it is possible to dive at Liverpool docks. The regeneration of the docks has lead to an increase in water quality and with that improvement there has been a corresponding increase in sea life. Wide ranges of marine animals, from cod to flounder and Gurnard, have been reported. It is necessary to get a permit from the harbour master to dive.
Further North, Near Barrow-on-Furness, Roa Island offers drift diving up the Piel Channel. If this is drifted on a flooding tide decent marine life and reasonable visibility can be found.
As is the norm near major sea ports Liverpool Bay offers a wealth of opportunity for the wreck diver. There are many undiscovered wrecks in the area and there is therefore some very exciting and stimulating diving awaiting adventurous groups who have the time, skills, and persistence to explore these wrecks. The Liverpool bay area is rather exposed to the prevailing winds so visibility is at its best after a spell of settled weather and as is to be expected the wrecks further offshore offer the best visibility. Wrecks closer to shore are best dived on a flooding tide.
The Wrecks of Liverpool Bay by Chris Michael ISBN 0 9524315 0 5 describes a couple of dozen wrecks in detail.
Arguably the best offshore diving in the region is done from the Isle of Man. The Island can be reached by ferry in about 4 hours from Liverpool. The Island benefits from good visibility, it has an abundance of wildlife including colonies of common seals and in the summer month's basking sharks are frequent visitors. For the wreck enthusiast there are many opportunities. Diving from Douglas offers access to a number of wrecks and some scenic drift dives. Regularly dived wreck sites are Albatross (23m), Ballina (33m), Paddle Wheel (30m), Lady Louisa (30m), Afton (24m), Liverpool (40m), Peveril (40m). The Fennella Ann and the Octavia are also popular. Good drifts can often be found off Langness, Santon Head, Little Ness and Douglas Bay.
Port St. Mary gives easy access to the scenic drifts around the Calf of Man and the Chicken Rock pinnacle. These are in general depths of 20-40m. There are a number of other good scenic dives around the south of the Island such as Sugarloaf Caves, Spanish Head, Perwick Bay and Port Erin. There are also plenty of wrecks such as Ringwall (40m), Citrine (15m), Thracian (33m), Don Bosco (33m) and many others in the 'technical range'.
A lot of diving in the North West region is at inland sites.
Capernwray and Eccleston Delph are extremely popular commercial dive centres. Both sites are excellent for training and can be very busy at weekends.
Hodge Close is a flooded slate quarry between Windermere and Coniston. Access is via a tunnel and a ladder. It is a spectacular site, surrounded by steep rock walls popular with climbers. There have been serious rock falls in recent years. Devils Bridge is a spot on the River Lune near Kirkby Lonsdale. Diving is allowed here outside of the salmon fishing season. When the river is low, it gives a pleasant dive. The river becomes undiveable after heavy rain.
Of course many divers may be attracted to the Northwest by the beauty of The English Lake District. The larger, deeper lakes Windermere, Ullswater, and Coniston offer a variety of dive sites, including one or two wrecks and drop-offs. The underwater life is generally sparse, and visibility is only rarely better than a few metres. Several of the smaller lakes can also be dived, and some groups have carried equipment up the fells to dive in the mountain tarns. The tarns are dived principally because of their position and the effort of getting there. There is said to be the remains of a Mosquito aircraft in Red Tarn.
UK DIVE GUIDES
Books and guides to help you plan, and to take with you - buy on-line.
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Diving the Blue Planet by Harry Ryall
Big Fish - Isle of Man by Stuart Wilson
Capernwray by Paul Monro
The Hodge Close Experience by Scott Laddiman
Fleswick Bay
St Bees
 ¨Port Erin,Isle of Man
Eccleston Delph
Hodge Close
Ullswater
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