Superb Diving in Loch Carron with 5 Bells diving, 3 & 4/5/08

[alexmaclennan]

This trip report is also posted on congeralley.com, where I am a moderator.

My buddy and I are just back from a great weekend's diving in Loch Carron. The Gemini Storm trip to Coll and Tiree was cancelled, Dive and Sea the Hebrides was fully booked, but I found a website for 5 Bells Diving on Google - never heard of them, so emailed and arranged to do two RIB dives on Saturday, an evening shore dive, and one RIB dive on Sunday (we were going to Skye to dive our mate's two moorings on Sunday afternoon prior to coming back to Glasgow). Phoned round for accomodation and got twin room at Castle Cottage a local B and B, on the main street.

Drove up from just west of Glasgow on Friday night. 4 hours and 175 miles later we reached Lochcarron. The drive was lovely, over Rannoch Moor and through Glencoe to Fort William, then through Glenshiel with the South Clunie Ridge and Saddle to our left and Five Sisters to our right. Turn right just before Kyle of Lochalsh and go over a high pass and drop down into the south side of Loch Carron. The road takes you around the loch past Strathcarron to Lochcarron village. Settled in to the accomodation and went to the Lochcarron Hotel for a beer (3 pints of Isle of Skye real ale) and to meet Dave Black of 5 Bells Diving.

Dave is a bear of a Geordie who has been commercial diving in the area for 5 years. His background before commercial training was as a PADI Staff Instructor and he has decided to go back to give recreational diving a go. The 5 Bells website had only been running for a few weeks, and mine was the first email inquiry. We would be going out as just the two of us. Dave said there were no wrecks but good scenic diving. We agreed he would take us to whichever sites he thought best to give us good diving.

Only wreck Dave knows in the loch - the old Strome Ferry



We met at the North Strome ferry jetty (the ferry no longer runs) 3.5 miles west of Lochcarron at 9am on Saturday. Kitted up and dropped our stuff into Dave's 5.5m RIB.

Dave & RIB


Usual safety brief on RIBs and then off to the first dive site. 'I'll show you Loch Carron's best kept secret' says Dave. He drives up to a fish farm and out pop two dolphins which then follow the RIB, playing under the bow and jumping straight out of the water for 1/4 mile. Superb

Dive 1 - Cuddies Point to Avalanche Shelter
Cuddies Point


Avalanche Shelter


This is a boulder slope onto a silty seabed, on the S side of the Loch about 2 1/2 miles from N Strome. We drop onto the seabed and head slowly down to 30m. The viz is 8 to 10m and lots of ambient light. Lots of small sealife and seapens at below 26m, Back onto the boulderslope slight drift with the Ebb, poke round but did not see any blue fellas (I never see them), finally back through kelp to surface. Dave picks us up, calm day but obviously an expert boat handler, and back to N Strome after a cup of tea on the RIB.

30m max for 47 mins. Viz 8 to 10m. Temp 9 degrees.

Lunch at the Bistro, then meet 12.30 for second dive.

Dive 2 - Drift from Conservation Bay to North Strome Jetty

Conservation Bay from road


The east wall from the sea. We dropped in to left of the house


Panorama. The dive went from the house at the far left to past the far right of the picture. You can see Castle Bay with the fishing boats moored. The North Strone Jetty is just off the right side of the picture.


This was an adrenaline ride. Conservation bay or Smugglers Cove is a well known shoredive and a long time agreed no take area by Inverness BSAC. We were dropped just after slack onto the East wall, which is two minutes RIB ride west of the jetty. Dave told us to look out for a plaque and plinth, poke round for congers or a wolf fish in a big crack and lobsters on the bottom. No chance. The tide picked up and we raced along the wall at 18 to 20m. The wall and adjoining seabed are covered in Dead mans Fingers, sponges and a brittlestar carpet on the seabed. We flew along for 15 minutes, then came onto bare rocks, urchins and kelp. The current reversed, so we turned round and drifted back. We got our fingertips on a rocky shelf, then back into the main current which flew us over sand and kelp for 15 minutes before I put up the DSMB in 10m. While ascending I saw a DMF covered wall again. Our safety stop was a shambles as up and down currents meant that we could not stop at the usual 5 for 3. No harm as the last 15 minutes were in 7 to 10m anyway. Dave was right there and we surfaced almost back at the jetty. Our drift had taken us through a backeddy in Castle Bay (where current reversed), across the mouth of Castle Bay (sand & kelp), and then onto the wall of an island just to the west of the Jetty (glimpsed while ascending). Fantastic.

20m max for 48 mins. Viz 5 to 8m

Snooze in the sun in front of a Shinty match. Back at 5pm.

Dive 3 - Flame Shell Point.

Headland


Panorama with jetty to left and headland to right


This was a shore dive entering at HW slack from the N Strome Jetty and heading East along the headland. Huge kelp forest then poke about the cracks and crevices on the wall. Lots of small life. Back onto mesmerising kelp forest. We did not go onto the Flame shell colony that is said to be there (as I found out later)

17m max for 50 minutes. Viz 5 to 8m

Evening meal at the Bistro and pint of Red Cullin at Lochcarron hotel. 9am start.

Dive 4 - South side of Sgeir Chreagach.

Sgeir Chreagach. You can see some of Lochcarron village behind the reef.


This was an exploratory dive on a reef directly in front of Lochcarron. Dave had not dived it but had been told there was a wall. It didn't look like it on the echosounder but what the hell. In and down a silty seabed to 30m. Again lots of small life with very aggressive squatties and swimming crabs flying off the bottom. Seapens at below 25m. Picked up a few scallops and surfaced back at the reef. There were seals in the water, although we did not see or hear them while diving. Headed back after cuppa and more dolphin displays to N Strome.

30m max for 40 mins. Viz 8 to 10m.

After settling up, we headed off to Skye to dive the moorings.

Lawson Wood in 'Dive West Scotland' Acknowledgements says 'also grateful to Sue and Michael Scott at North Strome in Loch Carron who showed me what is probably the best shore diving I have done on the entire west coast - thank you' He was obviously impressed. Sue Scott has contributed some of her photos to the 5 Bells website gallery.

Loch Carron (the sealoch) is beautifully situated with lovely hills and the loch opens onto a view of the Black Cullin of Skye.

Lochcarron (the village) ticks plenty of boxes. Good accomodation, good beer with 2 hotels serving real ale, good food, fuel, shop, bank, and 9 hole golf course.

We ate really well. The breakfast at Castle Cottage B and B had eggs from Skye and delicious bacon and black pudding from the local butcher. Lunch and evening meal at the Bistro were sourced locally, great bacon & eggs, local mussels, venison and seafood for bouillabaisse.

Dave has a compressor that pumps to 232 bar. If things go well he will get premises for a divecentre. The RIB would be comfortable for 4. It would be a push for 6, but he could do double trips for groups as the sites are reasonably close to North Strome ferry.

The total cost for everything - diesel, two nights B and B, food, beer the diving, and air fills - came to about £180 per person. We had superb diving for that and could have done another couple of dives in Loch Carron on Sunday if we had not been going to Skye.

If you were traveling from down south, fly to Inverness airport 60 miles away. Dave can arrange for you to be picked up by minibus.

Finally, I ask Dave 'Why 5 Bells?'.
He replies 'In commercial diving, 5 Bells means 'job done''

Websites:
Diver Training and Diving Trips at Lochcarron on the West Coast of Scotland

Lochcarron Hotel for Accommodation in Wester Ross, Scottish Highlands
Rockvilla Hotel, Lochcarron, Wester Ross
Castle Cottage

http://www.thebistro.eu/

More pictures and video clips to follow,

alex

[alexmaclennan]

Loch Carron Scenery

Hillside travelling down loch


Castle Bay with Cullins beyond. Our drift took us across the mouth of this bay.


Strone Castle 1


Strone Castle 2


Lord Wellington's nose to the east



Dolphins






alex

[MartyC]

Alex,
Crackin report and good photos

[thehappychappy]

Great report Alex.
Job Done indeed.

Davie

[alexmaclennan]

Originally Posted by thehappychappy

Great report Alex.
Job Done indeed.

Davie

Thanks, Davie

[alexmaclennan]

All photos by Alan R

Dahlia Anemone and half a prawn


Red Cushion Star


Aggressive crab. Not sure exact type of crab.


Sea Cucumber - Psolus phantapus. Lots of these on the mud slopes.


Moon Jelly in green water


Alex beside the Conservation Bay wall with light sabre!


Alex surfacing from Sgeir Chreagach clutching scallops


alex

[Lew21]

Good read & some good pics, cheers Alex

[geordie mick]

hi cracking trip report, meet dave about ten years a a go when he taught me to dive when he worked in newcasle.

[McBad]

Great report, certainly enough to make me have a look at their web-site Diver Training and Diving Trips at Lochcarron on the West Coast of Scotland . Will remember that for the future. Cheers, M.

[Snash]

Originally Posted by alexmaclennan

Lawson Wood in 'Dive West Scotland' Acknowledgements says 'also grateful to Sue and Michael Scott at North Strome in Loch Carron who showed me what is probably the best shore diving I have done on the entire west coast - thank you' He was obviously impressed. Sue Scott has contributed some of her photos to the 5 Bells website gallery.


alex

Great report.

Sue Scott is the lady who writes the marine biology gumph about squidgy things around the UK in either Dive or Diver.

Snash