Divers: Dave Metcalf, Geraldine Metcalf, Mark Knox, Mal Brown, Gail Brown, Ray Brown, Ian Brown, Brenda & Carl Wilkinson, Ian Muirhead, Martin Fraser, Tony Dixon, Debbie Dixon, Nick Latham, Scott Keenlyside, Andy Anderson,  Ian Wright.

We had travelled up to Beadnell on the Friday night and slept in the bunk house at a local watering hole.  Next morning we were up bright and early and down to the car park to load up the RIB.  Weather was cloudy and over cast. I was quietly delighted to be on the best RIB. We then launched an set underway along with other club boats for the islands.  One of the club boats started acting up both engines were miss-firing.  As this was the first dive on the Farne Islands my wife and I were feeling slightly nervous and a little apprehensive.  As we approached the Farnes the sea proved to be a little bit rougher than I would have liked, this mixed with the smell of the guam and the already nervous disposition, I could feel a memorable day developing. 

The first dive was the ‘The Pinnacles’ off Staple Island.  The cunning dive plan was to drop down on the wall and follow it east, then send up a DSMB and be picked up be the RIB, the depth would be the region of 14m.  I got kitted up in the back of the RIB.  Why do I always make putting fins on look so hard? We performed our buddy checks and then we were off, over the side into the water.  We dropped down the side of the Pinnacle wall and started off in an easterly direction, the slight swell disappeared as soon as we left the surface. We spent the time bumbling around the large boulders with some large and colourful wrasse. Visibility was OK - 5m.  After 20 mins we sent up the DSMB and were picked up by the RIB as arranged.  Back on the RIB the sea condition was starting to get the better of me, and it was touch and go if I would see my breakfast again.  We waited in the boat for the other divers to return for what seemed like a couple of years.  Anyway, once the dives were complete, we set off for lunch.  I started to feel a bit better once the boat started moving. 

For lunch we stopped on Longstone to change the cylinders and have a bite to eat, I was starting to feel better. 

As the tide was starting to turn the second dive site was chosen quickly it was the Abyssinia on the Knivestone reef.  We kitted up quickly, with the obligatory ‘making the putting the fins on look really hard’.  The dive plan was to descend down another wall swim away from it, send up a DSMB and then be picked up by the RIB.  I had heard this plan before! 

The sea was quite choppy by this time, over the side on the RIB we went and off down the wall.  The visibility was very good.  At times it was almost like some one was flashing a torch at you when the sunlight shone through the clouds and into the water.  Just at that moment I thought I saw the outline of a seal, but my wife was not convinced.  We then spent time mooching around some very sandy clean rocky crevices.  We then moved away from the wall and sent up the DSMB. When we arrived at the surface, I found that my idea of the distance away from the reef was different at the surface due to the changing tide, which gave the boat handlers a challenge. I held onto the front of the RIB while it gently powered away to a safe distance from the reef as the swell was pushing onto the rocky edge of the reef. 

Once back on the RIB I really started to feel ill.  Eventually everyone was back on the RIB and we set off back to Beadnell.  A great day! 

On day two (Sunday) the weather looked even worse than the previous day.  My better half was reluctant to even go out on the RIB, but following some persuasion, she relented.  On the water the sea was worse than the previous day. Quite a bit of time was spent finding a suitable dive site – Joe’s Reef.  The selected dive site was protected from the wind and the sea, it was surprisingly calm. We were soon in the water (starting to get the hang of putting theses fins on). 

The RIB was anchored in shallow (3m) water above the reef. The plan was to dive down to the reef following the line. Drop off the edge of the reef to the sea bed (10m) then follow the reef east and then back, finally, coming back up the line. The reef was covered in kelp but once on the seabed it was found to be lovely clean coral sand.  We followed the reef wall east mooching around the kelp looking for empty sea urchin shells.

The sea was really calm and the dive went like it was planned. We even managed to find our way back to the anchor line and back onto the RIB with no problems. Once the other divers returned, we had a drink and some sandwiches. What a difference to yesterday. 

The second dive was on a wreck called The Coryton.  The wreck is close to the shore in around 7 m of water as we were diving at low tide.  Again, the plan was to follow the anchor line to the seabed then head for the shore where the echo sounder indicated that the wreck could not be missed.  Again, the dive went to plan, we found the boiler, circumnavigated it and then followed the hull of the wreck.  The water was a bit cloudy and a slight swell could be felt, but it still made for a good dive.  To make things better we even managed to find the anchor line for the boat and got back with no problems.  It was almost as if we knew what we were doing. 

The ride back to Beadnell was good, the sea surprisingly rough as where we were diving had been remarkably sheltered.

A very memorable weekend.