With Capernwray being a little nearer than some of our coastal destinations, earlier in the year, most of the Doing' It' gang had a bit of a lay in, with us not having to start out till around 7am. So with the site opening at 9am one by one, and two by two the gang started to arrive eager to get started and see what Capernwray had to offer.

Around 10 am everyone had arrived, and it was time to do our site orientation, Barry took control (leaving Dave free to scoff his second bacon buttie) of this and delivered an expert brief of all the features at the Capernwray site. Barry covered everything that the group could expect to see underwater and also all the relevant safety aspects, that applied to the site. Now it was time to get wet and have some fun. So with all the buddy pairs sorted the divers who were doing their own dives went off to get kitted up, and the divers who were having an escorted dive had an extra little brief with Dave.

With every one kitted up and buddy checks done it was time to hit the water. The first thing you notice about Capernwray when you get in is the excellent visibility, as the water is actually blue (not quite like the red sea) but very good for an inland site. The most popular destinations for our gang seemed to be the mock up Oil Rig, the Wessex Helicopter (in much better condition than the one in Stoney Cove) the HMS Podsnap, which is an old mine sweeper and the Cessna Aircraft. With around 10 meters visibility, navigation was easy (even for the likes of Matt !) and marine life was everywhere, in the form of Roach, Perch and loads of Brown & Rainbow Trout.

Around 60 minutes later all divers were out of the water with big smiles on their faces swapping stories of how good the visibility was, and how good their navigation was (easy when you can see where your going !!!!). Surface interval time and we all headed for the cafe for a warm drink and the customary bacon and egg sandwich (second or third of the day for some of us – gosh we’re a healthy bunch). The facilities at Capernwray are excellent so you can even sit in the cafe with drysuits on, very diver friendly.

The plan for the second dive was discussed, and Dave suggested that we dive the shelf area with a maximum depth of around 10 meters where there is the unusual sight of Lord Lucan and Shergar (yes honestly !). The two horses were brought by Capernwray from near by Morecambe Pleasure Beach. At the end of the dive Dave would feed the Trout with a bag of ready prepared food he had brought with him (he’s done this before whispered a few of the group), Barry did refuse to bring the Chips, and Curry Sauce though.

On the second dive visibility had dropped slightly but was still a respectable 6 meters, around the shelf area. As we headed along, Lord Lucan and Shergar came into view  (a strange sight indeed) and you could forgive yourself for thinking you were narked. Next was the wreck of the African Queen and then onto a fish feeding frenzy...

About 40 minutes later and we were all gathered in a tight group in around 4 meters as Dave produced his bag of food. Instantly huge Rainbow and Brown Trout were darting around in anticipation of a free meal, then Dave split the bag and it was a free for all, with masses of fish every where.

With all divers out of the water, we quickly de-kitted and headed for the cafe where we discussed the days diving and Daves fish feed. With big smiles on everyone's faces and talk of where the next doing it Sunday would take us, you can be certain it will be another busy fun filled day out.

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