Society Spotlight: Why Sub Aqua is the best club at Sussex

There’s an extraordinary other world underwater, just waiting to be explored. What better way to do so than by kitting yourself up and diving down into the depths below? I spoke to Luke, chairman of Sub Aqua – Sussex University’s scuba diving club – about why students should consider joining.

You’ll have extraordinary new experiences

Where do you usually go diving?

The locations of a dive vary wildly from Brighton pier to the Red Sea, so we have something for everyone. We often go away for the week or weekend in the UK, and in the summer we have our own boat moored just outside Brighton.

As a club, there are a number of locations we frequently visit. Every year we run a trip to a flooded quarry for the training of the new divers. While the dive site is not amazing, it is really great to spend the whole weekend on a trip together, which helps with the bonding of the club.

At the end of each summer, we also spend a week in Cornwall. Now, as dive sites go, this is pretty amazing. The water is extremely clear (with visibility of more of than ten metres) and the wildlife you can see is outstanding. It’s not uncommon for us to see sharks, dolphins and seals all in the same week on this trip.

So cute

Finally, a much beloved location of ours is Lundy Island. For those not familiar with Lundy, it’s an island in the Bristol Channel with a population of only 28 people. The area around it is a marine conservation zone and is home to a colony of 120 grey seals. These seals aren’t shy of divers at all and are often referred to as the dogs of the sea because they love to come and play. If they are feeling brave they may even come and take your fins.

Seeing the ocean in a whole new way

Abroad isn’t the only place where you’ll get to see cool sea life

What’s the best part of diving with Sub Aqua?

I don’t even know where to start. The adventure and the fact there is something for everyone. We dive everything from shipwrecks hundreds of years old to coral reefs teeming with life. There are so many amazing creatures and shipwrecks I could talk about.

When I did my first dive in Cornwall, we were diving off a boat, as I got into the water and stuck my head under I saw the largest jellyfish (a barrel jellyfish) I have ever seen. The bell of it was about a metre in diameter. That is something I took a lot of care to avoid.

Natural glow sticks

I was doing a night dive, when my buddy signalled to turn off our torches, I was a little bit perplexed, but he was the more experienced diver so I followed suit. As my eyes adjusted, I noticed the water was alive with millions of tiny sparks. I quickly realised I was seeing bioluminescent plankton – it was such a beautiful and magical moment.

As for wrecks, recently we did a weekend away in Swanage. While there I got the chance to dive the Valentine Tanks, originating from 1942, when the British Army had the great idea of designing tanks that would float. In keeping with standard British engineering, they sank like a stone. The wreckages of those tanks are amazingly well preserved, with lots of lobsters and eels now having taken up residence.

Diving buddies are the best kind of buddies

A friendly bunch

Could you tell me a bit about the social side of the club?

Between sleeping in tents or caravans for trips, diving together and the time spent on the boat, you spend a lot of time with people. So everyone gets to know each other very well. One big plus is that people can stay in the club after graduation if they choose to become an instructor and help out. So we have some members who have been around since the 1980s!

It’s totally inclusive

Who can join Sub Aqua?

Anyone can join – whether you’ve been diving for years or barely touched the bottom of a pool, diving is for anyone and everyone. If you are new to diving, we have a beginners course which entails theory lectures and pool sessions before going away for the weekend to finish the qualification.

If you’re interested, SubAqua is running try dives throughout late November and early December if you want to have a go, as well as a beginners course running next term. I would love it if more people came to join the club! We have our own boat to get to the many shipwrecks around Brighton so we’re never short of diving. Why not come try out something new?