Portland July 2026

The July Portland trip ran with 10 divers including two doing their first UK sea dives. 

Dives were Hartlepool, Ringstead ledges, Bats Head Reef and British Inventor.

The Hartlepool was a 5,500 ton merchant ship sunk in WW2 by German E-boat.  The wreck in only 13m is very broken but covered in life: pouting, pollock, tompot blenny, conger eel, wrasses and king scallops.

Ringstead ledges was a little 'low energy' but notable for large numbers of sea hares.  Spider crabs and a few fish also evident including a small free swimming conger.

Bats Head reef put on a most enjoyable half knot drift dive with an assortment of fish, more sea hares, prawns and common lobster.

The British Inventor was an oil tanker mined in WW2.  The wreck in 21m is very broken but absolutely covered in life: large shoals of pouting, pollock, most if not all of the British Wrasses, tompots, gobies, lobster, king scallop and conger eels including an absolute whopper.

Viz was good-ish (6-8m) on the first 3 dives and unfortunately a bit poor on the British Inventor (2-4m).  Water temperature was a balmy 19degC+!  Once again MHD did a good deed for the day, recovering a stuck shot line for a 3rd party on the British Inventor. 

Above the water we had an enjoyable time in Weymouth, refuelling at the Nothe Tavern and Old Rooms and also enjoying some live music at the Tin Cat and Finns.

An enjoyable trip marred only by being two divers down due to illness and injury.