What Can I Expect To See????????

[Stu1969]

Good afternoon.

I am a holiday snorkeler and not very experienced. I am fortunate to have friends who live near Seahouses in Northumberland who I visit regularly, this where I have done most of my snorkelling. There is a lovely mixture of Sandy beaches and rocky areas, it looks ideal. Unfortunately I have not been lucky enough to see very much, just the odd small fish. Does anyone have any experience of this area and know what I could expect to see in this area?

Thank you in advance

Regards

Stuart.

[PeteM]

Good afternoon.

I am a holiday snorkeler and not very experienced. I am fortunate to have friends who live near Seahouses in Northumberland who I visit regularly, this where I have done most of my snorkelling. There is a lovely mixture of Sandy beaches and rocky areas, it looks ideal. Unfortunately I have not been lucky enough to see very much, just the odd small fish. Does anyone have any experience of this area and know what I could expect to see in this area?

Thank you in advance

Regards

Stuart.

If you can get out to the Farnes then you can expect to see (close up)

Seals
Ballan Wrasse
Seals
Anemones
Seals
Hydroids
Seals
Nudibranches
Seals
Birds underwater
Seals
Cuckoo Wrasse



Plus lots of other stuff

By the way you should sea seals up close and personal

[Stu1969]

If you can get out to the Farnes then you can expect to see (close up)

Seals
Ballan Wrasse
Seals
Anemones
Seals
Hydroids
Seals
Nudibranches
Seals
Birds underwater
Seals
Cuckoo Wrasse



Plus lots of other stuff


By the way you should sea seals up close and personal



Hi
I know the farn’s are a well known diving destination but are you able to land on them and snorkel? I am not experienced and I prefer the idea of remaining close to the shore! (for now)

[PeteM]

Hi
I know the farn’s are a well known diving destination but are you able to land on them and snorkel? I am not experienced and I prefer the idea of remaining close to the shore! (for now)

I have done so - admittedly from a dive boat during lunch.

[DRW]

The conventional wisdom may be that only waters rich in fauna and flora are worth snorkelling. I guess the popular perception is that the same holds true for land-based activities. When I walk in the countryside, however, I seldom stumble over interesting vegetation or wildlife. When I do, it's a bonus, not a necessity. The interest lies in the shared experience of the rural environment, the glorious sun overhead, the smell of new-mown grass, the coolness of a gentle breeze. It's still a synaesthetic experience, appealing to all the senses, even though I may never see a wild orchid or an adder.

Actually, I tend to see more wildlife on my way to the North Sea coast, south of Blyth, than I do in the water. As I drive, I've spotted foxes leaping across the winding road in front of me. I've seen plenty of rabbits, not all of them flattened, at the side of the road and ducks and swans in ponds in farmers' fields. By the time I've reached my snorkelling spot, I've had my fill of nature. The car park warns dog walkers about the presence of seal pups, which I've never seen. In the water, the sole fauna is likely to be small jellyfish, the sole flora tiny clumps of seaweed. The sun on the horizon and the view of the chapel on the hill is sufficient eye-candy, as our American cousins would say.

I've just been reading a thread on another forum entitled "mental recall", where the original poster, a diver with long experience, claims that diving can improve memory. I don't know about that, but I like what he has to say about knowing how to look before you can see interesting things underwater:

I remember when I first started diving, how disappointed I was in the featureless bottom of the lakes here in Texas when I was 17........after several dives, I was getting bored with some of the locations. I made this comment to a older diver who told me I only had to start looking, turning my head like a screw and looking, the way fighter pilots did in combat. He lectured me in the fine art of observation, making his points about acknowledging what I saw, not just looking and going on. His instruction was very valueable to me as I soon started to see more and more........amazed at what was on what seemed a featureless mud bottom........
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/basic-scuba-discussions/340549-mental-recall.html

I think there's a valuable lesson there not just for him, but also for the rest of us. We don't have to go to Sharm el Sheikh to snorkel interesting waters. We can find them here too, off the shores of the UK, but first we all have to learn the fine art of observation.

[Toblerone]

That was a really great post DRW. Couldn't have put it better myself.