Although we don't have a shop or dive boat ourselves we are always happy to advise you in relation to local dive sites and boats.
We have put together information on some local diving sites. Some of the sites like Bognor Rocks are shore dives, others are boat dives.
The standard point of reference for dive sites in this area is "Dive Sussex" it offers good background and descriptive details of the local dive sites, the positions given cannot always be 100% relied upon and it should be remembered that this book is now 30 years old and as such the condition of many sites may have changed, unfortunately in most cases for the worst.
Photo © Phillip Perry (cc-by-sa/2.0)
Dive Type:- Shore
Depth:- 6-8m
Best Dived at:- High Tide
Bognor Rocks is a reef that curves out from the beach, West of Bognor Pier. Best dived around High Water to ensure a reasonable depth, the reef is well potted and care should be taken to avoid entanglement. Marine life is typically plentiful and comprises of Crabs, Lobsters, Blennies, Nudibranchs.
Having now dived this site i found it lovely, although I'm not totally convinced as to the best time to dive. For depth its best to dive this site at high tide, on the down side i did experience a medium strength current and had to compensate by starting the dive swimming into the current. If you wanted to trade the depth for an easier dive then 4hr before the high tide would be the slack window on this site.
I am going to be using this as a training site during the summer months as the sandy bottom is ideal for skills followed by the rocks as the guided portion of the dive ………. Ideal.
Site map will follow shortly…
Dive Type:- Boat
Depth:- 10m
Best Dived at:- Slack Tide
Slack water is 4 hours before high water, 3 hours after high water at Portsmouth
Dive Sussex lists the Far Mulberry as without doubt one of the best dives along the whole Sussex coast for those who want to see fish.
Constructed of various concrete caissons and pontoons, the Mulberrys were the innovation that made the Normandy campaign following the D-Day landings possible. At only 10m to the seabed and rising to within a metre or two of the surface, it provides an ideal depth to potter about following a first dive on one of the deeper Channel wrecks.
Photo © Selsey bill sub Aqua club
Dive Type:- Boat
Depth:- 28m
Best Dived at:- Neap Tide
The Mixon Hole lies at the Eastern end of the Looe Channel that connects the Solent to the Eastern Channel.
The currents through here can be significant so it is recommended that this site is only dived on Neap tides. The Cardinal Marker is in 5-6m of water. A short swim South East brings you to the cliff edge - this shallow area on top has luxuriant marine growth and life. The blue clay cliff drops vertically to a gravel bottom - there are occasional crabs and lobsters where boulders are dotted into the clay. Spherical balls (rumoured to be from Roman catapults) dot one area of the bottom which is usually a good place to see Cat-Sharks, Smoothhounds and Rays.
Dive Type:- Shore
Depth:- 6m
Best Dived at:- Slack Tide
Slack water is 4 hours before high water, 3 hours after high water Portsmouth
Although the much loved Lifeboat Boathouse and the historical remains of the previous Boathouse have now been removed, this is still an area of abundant sea life and objects of interest including a landing craft and a mini reef. The area can be teaming with shoals of breeding fish, bib, wrasse, gobies, shore, spider and hermit crabs, lobsters, cuttlefish, pipefish, small congers, oysters, mussels and anemones. However worthy of note is that since the Medmerry Beach alterations the visibility has been a little variable.
Address:-
51, Wellington Gardens,
Selsey,
West Sussex,
PO20 0RF.
Tel:-
Landline. 01243 202200
Mobile. 07534 911228
Email:-
info@sussexdiver.com
Our first consideration as always is your safety, in an effort to ensure this all our training will be undertaken in line with the industry best standards.
At Sussex Diving & Leisure we offer a full range of courses for Children and Adults alike, from total novice to professional level, including First Aid and Manual Handling training.
We specialise in Children's diving courses and have a monthly Diving club to engage young minds, we are also able to offer private courses for those who are insecure or just want some privacy.
Not sure if diving is for you? No problem we run informal taster sessions (Try Dives) most weekends at our private heated pool in Eartham, Nr Chichester and we will be happy to let you try diving without committing to a full course, If you do decide you like it and want to go further then, we will give you your money back when you purchase our premium option, if its not for you then all you have lost is the small fee and an hour of your time.
We offer staged payment terms on most of our courses, 1st payment when you register, 2nd payment just before your first pool session and the final payment when we go to the open water site.
At Sussex Diving & Leisure we offer a full range of PADI diving courses in West Sussex & Hampshire covering Selsey, Chichester, Bognor Regis, Petworth, Midhurst, Petersfield, Arundel, Littlehampton, Wittering, Bracklesham, Emsworth, Havant and Worthing area's.