Isle of Man Scuba Diving

Dive Site: The Iron Pier and the Dolphin
Location: Ramsey, Isle of Man
Description: Pier dive
Depth: 7 metres average (23 feet), 14 metres max (46 feet)
Visibility: Up to 10 metres (30 feet)

The Iron Pier runs out from Ramsey Beach, on the north of the Island, with the Dolphin (a concrete structure, not the mammal) detached at the end, with a max depth of about 14m at high tide. Following along the base of the Iron Pier you’ll find all loads of marine life as it all congregates under the relatively safe shelter of the pier. Crabs, lobsters and scallops are plentiful.

At the end of the pier, you can head north for a few minutes until you hit the Dolphin. Much of the structure has collapsed which makes it a fantastic dive with loads of nooks and crannies to poke your head under. Again, loads of marine life makes this home with at least four resident conger eels, loads of lobsters and incredibly charismatic tompot blennies. The tompot blennies, which can be seen poking their heads out of the cracks and crevices, are incredibly inquisitive fish and often pop out to take a closer look at the passing diver.

If you’re good on your air, you can do the whole of the Iron Pier and the Dolphin in one shore dive with easy access from Ramsey Beach. You’d have to do this shore dive at low tide, be quite fit (it’s a long swim!) and give yourself at least 90 minutes for the round-trip. There can be some boat traffic around the Dolphin, so always use a surface marker and stick close to the structures when ascending. If diving from the shore, always remember it’s a long swim back to the beach.

Isle of Man Scuba Diving

Dive Site: The Glendun
Location: Maughold, Isle of Man
Description: Wreck
Depth: 8 – 12 metres (25 – 40 feet)
Visibility: Up to 10 metres (30 feet)

The Glendun is a Belfast steamer that ran aground back in 1940. She lies just south of Maughold Head on the east coast of the Isle of Man, and is only accessible by boat. Lying right up close to the cliffs this dive provides some spectacular views for the journey there and for any surface intervals. The large majority of the structure has broken up and been scattered around the area, which can easily turn the dive into a scavenge and rummage for brass.

The centre piece of this dive is the boiler, the top of which can be easily spotted from above the surface. Raising 8 metres into the water, the structure looks pretty immense when swimming right next to it. Divers can swim down into any one of the three boiler casings or spend their bottom time rummaging around amongst the brass. With a max depth of around 12 metres and a position close to the cliffs, the wreck of the Glendun is a really good, easy, scenic dive.

Isle of Man Scuba Diving

Dive Site: Peel Castle & Fenella Beach
Location: Peel, Isle of Man
Description: Reef / shore dive
Depth: 10 metres (30 feet)
Visibility: Up to 10 metres (30 feet)

Peel Castle provides a fantastic back-drop for this dive, as you circle around the castle grounds, in depths touching on 10 metres. The dive is done as a loop with no need to double back, so you can spend all the dive exploring new areas. Starting behind the food kiosk out on the breakwater, you can clamber in over the rocks – it gets very tricky when there is some swell and it is a long way to go over the rocks at low tide, so always take this into consideration. Once you are in, it’s as simple as keeping the rocks on your left all the way around.

On your way around the Castle to Fenella Beach, you’ll head past a variety of backdrops, starting with a kelp forest, before hitting a few caves and then around the corner to the rocky sides of the cliff face. Peel is home to a number of seals, which can be very playful. Just give them time to warm to you, and then they won’t want to leave you alone! You can easily spend an hour to navigate around the route – anything less than 45 minutes is powering it, and won’t give you a chance to admire the view.

The dive can always be done in the opposite direction, starting at Fenella and exiting at the back of the breakwater – bear in mind however that entry here is difficult so exit can be even harder. If the rocks at the breakwater are too dangerous, you can always start and finish at Fenella. Also remember that the breakwater toilets flush straight into the sea behind the breakwater – just be careful you avoid the outlet! The south side of Fenella Beach also provides an easy dive, just following the rocks out in a straight line. There’re a number of rock channels around here which make exploring good fun.

Rob Bathgate