​I HAD my chance. Clear blue waters with temperatures of around 28C, the world’s largest coral reef system, home to some of the most vulnerable and endangered species in the world … I came close to learning to scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef when visiting Queensland, Australia, more than 10 years ago.
Circumstances went against me and it never happened, but the desire to try it never went away. So when Penrith Divers offered me the chance to give it a go at their weekly training sessions at Penrith swimming pool, I literally jumped at the opportunity to take the plunge.
Unsure what to expect, I was a little daunted by the number of experienced divers around me, but my instructor, Richard Govan, soon put me at ease and everyone was keen that I enjoy the experience.
Charlotte Skelton, from Morland, who started diving ahead of a school trip to Indonesia seven years ago, loaned me her kit. The 24-year-old wanted to do some underwater studies during her visit, so it made sense for her to learn how to dive before she went. Her dad, Dave, decided to go along too and is now an instructor and chairman of the club.
Just a few minutes of introducing me to the kit and some safety advice and I was straight into the water, tentatively ducking my head at first, just to check I was breathing correctly. Breathing only through your mouth, using tanked air, takes a little practice, but I soon felt comfortable and was off to the deeper waters, with Richard closely in tow, in case I felt uncomfortable or was struggling in any way.
Kicking too hard, I was zooming ahead at first, but after I learned to relax, clear my mask if it let water in, and became more at ease with the buoyancy of my vest (BCD), I began to enjoy myself.
“Have you ever done gymnastics?” asked Richard after a while.
“No …” I replied tentatively, unsure what he was going to ask me to do!
“Well, you’re going to do a forward roll,” he announced, confidently.
“No, I’m going to land on my head …” I thought to myself, with confidence falling short of his own. But sure enough, after watching Richard demonstrate, to my surprise (and I do believe to Richard’s if he’s honest!), I managed some underwater acrobatics too, completing an unaided forward roll under the water. I do believe I’ve already caught the bug! Scuba diving clearly appeals to people of all ages. The oldest member at Penrith Divers is 70 and the youngest 16.
Secretary David Bell is holding the mantle for the older generation and has been scuba diving for 14 years, after starting on the island of Koh Samui, Thailand, in 2003.
Despite being in his 50s when he started, he felt he was “never too old to learn” and after five days of thorough training, did his first open water dive at Sail Rock and was hooked. David joined ScotSAC and Penrith Divers in late 2008 and attained sports diver level in the first 12 months, finished master diver training in March, 2012, and qualified as a branch instructor in early 2014.
He has now clocked up 400 dives in places ranging from Ullswater to Zanzibar and the Maldives.
Dylan Beattie, aged 16, and his brother Josh, 18, are the next generation at the club, with Dylan qualified as an open water diver and Josh a qualified sports diver.
While diving equipment is not cheap, the benefits of learning with a club include the fact you can borrow kit until you are certain that diving is for you.
All that is needed to start out is a club membership, which gives you all your training at the pool for the year for free, and membership of the training accreditation organisation ScotSAC. Penrith Divers meet at the town swimming pool every Sunday morning between 9 and 10am. For more information, visit penrithdivers.co.uk.

Day 1:
As day one was Halloween, the challenge had to be diving in fancy dress! Club members rose to
the occasion well but the Barracuda, Sardine shoals, Sea-horses and assorted other sea life that we
passed didn’t seem impressed. However, some members who, up to now, had only dived in English waters were surprised that you were able to see for more than 10 meters underwater and astonished by the amount and variety of sea life around them.

​After the day’s two dives it was becoming standard to meet
the partners for a tapas lunch followed by a relaxing
​afternoon in the sun.

Everyone enjoyed the good food mainly prepared by Ann with assistance from David on barby, good company helping the ladies to put faces to names, a few beers and wine rounded off with the great weather.

The day helped to celebrate a good 12 months with several members gaining new certificate levels.
They were:
Sports Diver - Josh Beattie and Josh Brooke.
Master Diver - Kate Brooke, Alan Green, Dave and Charlotte Skelton 
and achieving Club Instructor - David Bell and Alan Green.
All of this was made possible by our BDO and instructors Rob ,Richard and Billy and not forgetting the area RDO Peter on the cold mornings in Crummock.
Many thanks for the time and sometimes patience. 

The next day saw an early start as Rob took some of the trainees up to Loch Long. So starts the next 12 months.