Shore Diving (Kent)

Information provided by Andy Nuoy, Skipper Taurus (Dover)

SANDGATE

2 places to do good shore dives.

Site 1. Park in the car park next to the LITTLE CHEF, SLACK is at HIGH WATER ( Dover ). 60 mts offshore is a reef made from a lot of the rock armour for the new pipe leading inshore for the sewage system. ( Don't worry , ya won't get covered in sh**. Lots of crabs and little lobby's and swarming with fish. Seabed is sand up to the reef.

Site 2. Park in car park next to the rowing club. about 6 steps and ya on the beach. Same as SITE 1. but slightly deeper 15 mts MAX .

OLD FOLKESTONE PIER

Go on to the sea front, park in the furthest car park , where they hold the Sunday market ( next to the FUNFAIR ). SLACK HERE is HIGH WATER ( Dover ). Deepest i ever had was 9 mts , but if you find the old remains of the peir, you can find OLD token for the slot machines dating from 1915 parts of all the old seats etc etc .

WESTERN WALL ( Dover harbour )

Here is good diving along the wall ( DO NOT GO PAST THE FIRST SET OF STEPS ) as the current starts here and will have you in the entrance in a matter of minutes, and it's a 7 knotter . crabs / lobbies in the cracks of the wall. Also a little bit of a reef with the remains of a fishing boat.You REALLY NEED shore cover here, as you must inform PORT CONTROL on VHF channel 74 or ring them I have dived here most states of the tide , BUT high water is better as it's a long slooping pebble beach & the waterline is about 250 mts from where you park ya car

St MARGARETS BAY

High water ( Dover ) is the best time i have found. Dive by the sign saying " telegraph cable ". follow this for about 50 mts , then go S/W by 5 mts , and you be on a wreck site , you will see the iron keel and ribs .
VIZ here can be very good , if no rain in the past week, as the water gets very milky from the chalk.

DEAL

High water Dover or 5 hours after .
A good place is right in front of the castle , 50 mts swim to a reef , which is visable by the wavelets created by it. Her is the wreck off a WW II liberty ship the ' James Harrod ' . Sit in one of the 7 jeeps
You will here noise of engines , by these are the lol small fishing boats returning to the beach , and they give the reef a wide berth, ALWAYS use a SMB here.