The majority of divers in the south of England have dived under Swanage pier. The pier is supported on massive wooden pilings that stretch out into the distance.
The seabed is clear sand with patches of rocks and pebbles; close to the pier it is scattered with miscellaneous objects ranging from heavy girders to old benches, and further away are numerous boat moorings.
The bottom slopes imperceptibly, and the water is very shallow – three to five metres at most states of the tide. Among the
moorings are varying amounts of weed (varying with the season and between one spot and another): loose masses of mixed green and red algae eight inches or so high, small areas of eelgrass, the immigrant Japweed, and occasionally the annual kelp, with its curious knobbly bulbous holdfast.
A Great Novice Dive Site
Once kitted up and the necessary checks have been completed, we take the harbour steps down to the waters edge. The water is around a meter deep allowing you to calmly fin to deeper waters near the pier. A controlled decent to the seabed will then take place and as long as your happy, with an OK sign, the dive will begin.
We will descend to a nice safe depth of approximately three meters. Once you are comfortable with your buoyancy we will navigate through the rows of pillars, taking our time to take in all the marine life with regular air reserve checks, and communication. We will go to the end of the pier and return. We assend in the shallower waters and fin back to the steps.
Depending on the individual the dive time can last approximately 40 mins.
Suitable for Open water divers (or Novice Divers) and Discover scuba participants.