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This potentially week long July trip opened on a Saturday morning with a 6am meet-up on Weybourne beach. For the first dive on the Rosalie (just off Weybourne beach) we had at >5 metres viz. The following morning it was even better at ~7m. She was as pretty as ever - smothered in anemones, dead mans fingers et al, crawling with crabs, lobsters, nudibanchs and other assorted critters. The time between slacks was filled with drifts across the chalk gullies. |
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April/May/June has seen various trips to exotic locations like Stoney Cove and Gildenburgh. We've also been diving off the Norfolk coast and others have been down to the south coast. At the beginning of June Calypso was active with some diving off Felixstowe. |
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In mid-march there was the long awaited trip to Egypt for a week on the Blue Pearl. We did
the northern "Wrecks & Reefs" tour, and despite the wind (which reached force 7
on the last day) had a great trip. Pia (the Blue Pearl's Dive Guide) organised things well
and, as well as the Thistlegorm, we managed to get a dive on the Rosalie Moller - a first for
all(?) of us. The highlight of the week for most of us was when a pod of nine dolphins joined us on a late morning dive
at Seyul Kebira Lagoon - absolute magic! This time there were surprisingly few contributions for this year's turkey awards, but lack of quantity was balanced by Toby's excellent contribution! |
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In January there was a visit to the panto at Capel St Mary - Cinderella - performed by the Orchard Players. There was the added attraction(?) of our very own Paul Mann as one of the ugly sisters along with Helen as Baroness Hardup. An excellent show - enhanced at one point by that "International man of mystery" (Raj) being dragged up on stage to dance with the other ugly sister. (Unfortunately no photo). I wonder if Paul will be adding his eyelashes to his diving gear? (From their size they seemed to be a great tool for demisting the inside of a mask if it started to steam up on a dive!). |
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In mid-December there was the annual Christmas meal at the end of which
the club awards were presented.
The Steve Jensen trophy for the best trip went to Alan Beaumont for the Farnes trip. |
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At the end of November we had the club AGM. We now have a new committee and John Cook has passed the Chairmanship on to Dave Lock. A list of who is doing what in the coming year can be found on the Committee page. |
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At the end of October David, John & Frances headed off to the warmth of the Caribbean for two weeks shore diving in Bonaire. They had a great time in warm blue seas and excellent visibility. Frances has since written-up the trip for SubScript. |
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At the end of October (24th-35th it is the annual Dive Show at the NEC. Here you'll have the opportunity to empty your wallet buying all that dive gear that (you think) you need or find and book that dive-trip-of-a-lifetime. There are also the various informative seminars you can attend. As usual the club minibus will be making its way along the A14 & M6 to Birmingham and the NEC. Contact David if you wish to join the trip and let him know which day you would prefer. This year we have two tickets to give away to lucky winners of a difficult competition. All you have to do is answer the following question: Where is Dive 2009 taking place? Answer to the Chairman by word-of-mouth, email, phone or whatever by Monday 19th October. Winners will be drawn from a hat in the Cricketers that evening. |
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In late September there was a club BBQ on the bank of the river Deben. Calypso was launched from Felixstowe Ferry and used to ferry the BBQees up the river to the selected spot. After a couple of hours it was high water - putting Helen and the BBQ in river Deben! A great afternoon which we all thoroughly enjoyed. During the afternoon some members took the opportunity to develop their boat-handling skills. |
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In mid-September there was a weekend trip down to Selsey. The far Mulberry harbour was great - loads of life and the lifeboat station was also an unexpected hit - considering we thought the vis was marginal from the shore. Millions of tompots, lots of sedentary life, wrasse, bass etc etc. For a shore dive, really top notch. |
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In August Calypso had an outing at Sea Palling. Our first dive was on a wreck that the club hadn't dived before - the SS Ethel - which went down in 1894. Viz was good at ~8m. The plastic Kingfisher (see left) was found there (not an 19th century product! - and only a few barnacles on its beak.) and may become a trophy for a suitable club award. Also dived were the Artemesia and the Fulgens. |
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Sunstar have entered into a Partnership agreement with Ipswich Borough Council (through our use of the Fore Street Pool) and have achieved the Sport England 'Clubmark' standard. Details on the Clubmark scheme can be downloaded from the Sport England website download pages. |
In Brief
Diary System
We have an automated events diary.
Any user with a password can add their own events to the diary. Please mail me if you would like a password. This diary is the master diary for the club and printed copies are distributed with SubScript.
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