East Coast Shore Diving Sites
Dunbar
Johnstones Hole, or 'The Gripes' Dunbar.
A SQSAC favourite, although not diveable if exposed to Northerly or Easterly Winds, and if the wind has been in that direction I would avoid for a week until the sea settles down.
Parking is by the Old Cavalry Fort, across the bridge. Kit up then walk towards the harbour entrance, you arrive at a large wall, with a drop into the Harbour on your left, and a pebble beach on the right. looking out to sea between the cliffs you see a rock about 100 metres away this is the Gripes or what we call Johnstones Hole.
The Gripes or Johnstones Hole at Low water
Climb down the wall (there are steps and hand holds in the rock) and walk across the pebbles to the waters edge,( you may have to stagger across the slippy rocks if the tide is out ).
There are lots of ledges on the left to get your fins on and do a Buddy Check, on entering the water swim on a bearing of 30 degrees across kelp at about 3-4 metres you then come to a drop off to a sandy seabed at 6 metres, within a few fin strokes you arrive at the vertical face. I suggest you mark this spot with a pile of rocks so you can take the correct bearing on your return.
Keeping the wall on your right and continuing around over boulders and through gaps you will get gradually deeper, there is lots of life on the wall and on the seabed under the rocks. Looking up it is very impressive as the wall hangs over you, and is covered in soft corals.The depth here is normally around 10 metres, and although visibility can be 15 metres, it is usually about 4 metres.
Continuing round you arrive at what looks like a doorway in the rock where the depth increases to about 13 metres, the current can be quite strong here, looking up at the walls you see carpets of white and orange Deadmens Fingers, with lots of butterfish and crabs in the nooks and crannies. The seabed here is covered in large boulders which are home to some large Lobsters and Edible Crabs, continuing round you arrive at the first of two 'caves', not a lot in the first one, but a bit further on is a larger one, this is Johnstones Hole, it looks very dark but once in you discover a sandy floor with walls rising vertically and leaning inwards to the surface. By ascending slightly you find fish and crabs in the holes and cracks. We once encountered a large Seal in here hunting for his dinner, Im not sure who got the bigger shock!. There is lots of life in and around the rock here but be careful and not stir up the visibility in here and ruin it for your Buddies!.
Leaving here continue with the rock on your right, you will find the seabed rises over large rocks and boulders, keeping to your right takes you between two large Rocks and you enter what can only be described as a walled ampitheatre with a sandy floor. This is normally full of Wrasse and shoals of fish, and I have often seen Octopus here hiding in the horizontal crack in the wall which runs the length of the wall, continue out of the ampitheatre and if you want to go right around you keep the rock close on your right, it can get very shallow before you arrive back at your starting point.
You can go up a couple of metres and over the rock if the tide is high and this takes you back to the start. Most people turn around and keeping the wall on your left return to the start(at the pile of rocks you left earlier !). A a bearing of 210 degrees will take you right back up the pebble beach.
If you have air and time spend a bit of time at the end of the sandy patch where the drop off is, I have come across a large Conger here under the rocks, there are also lots of Scorpion Fish to be found around the walls back up to the Pebble Beach.
It can be an excellent dive in the summer, almost tropical with shoals of fish and stunning colours, but it can also be really poor with bad visibility, and strong currents, and there are large swells breaking into the pebble beach, entry and exit can be dangerous. I have seen people being pulled up the rocks on ropes here!.
The exit is the reverse of your entry, de-kit and back up on to the Harbour Wall.
Old Harbour Reef
Parking at the Old Cavalry Fort, kit up and follow the path along the side of the Fort, when you reach the blocked off entrance walk down to the waters edge. Best dived at High Tide, although it can be dived at any state of the tide. This is an excellent dive for Training or first Open Water Dives, as depths are not more than 6 metres. Once you have completed your Briefing and Buddy Check you can enter the water by a stride entry or slide in off the flat rocks.
The depth here is 2 to 3 metres, either head out on a bearing of 25 degrees to the harbour Reef
which runs west to east for about 40 metres with a nice wall on the Fort side and a slope on the Seaward side which is covered in colourful Seaweeds, Nudibranch, small Fish and lots of Crustaceans.
Or keeping the rocks on your left follow this around over the kelp to a boulder covered seabed with lots of life if you wriggle under and through the kelp.
A variation on this Dive is to follow the wall all the way around to Johnstones Hole and exit up Pebble Beach, or for those who have miserly air consumption take a bearing to the outer rocks called the 'Yetts'
and follow round them back to Johnstones hole and Pebble Beach, this is an excellent dive with lots of life on these outer rocks.
This Dive needs good navigation skills, air consumption and careful planning as the currents can be quite strong and it will take over an hour to complete
The 'Bath Reef', or The 'Craig en Ghelt'
An excellent Dive, lots of life and Seals as well!.
Looking down from the steps
Parking in Marine Road beside the Park, and access to the Beach down a set of steps
Accessed by a long climb down stairs on a cliff to a beach at the site of the Old Swimming Pool.
Best done at High Tide, but accessible at any state of tide although rocks can be slippery.
Kit up on the Beach and then wade out through the Old pool to a small gully this opens out and the depth increases to 3-4 metres, dropping down hear keep the rock on your left anf follow around the dive is in and out of the ravines and canyons as far as you want to go, further around the rock drops away to a white sandy Seabed, exit can be back the way you came or out in one of many gulleys and walk back across the flat rocks to the Beach.
An alternative is to walk across the rocks west to a large rock and drop in through a deep gulley into a site called Coral Canyon, as the name suggest covered in Soft Corals.
Lots of Fish, Crabs and Lobsters i have seen several octopus on one dive here, along with Scorpion Fish and Angler Fish.
Seals can be found sleeping in these quiet canyons, they dont seem to appreciate Divers disturbing them, they have big teeth!.
Worst part is the climb back up the steps to the cars, real heart attack stuff !.
Again like other Dunbar and East Coast sites very weather dependant, if it is blowing Easterly or Northerly, or has been in recent days - forget it!.
Eyemouth and St Abbs Dive Guide Click here