Scapa Flow had always been one of those “one day” dives — the kind you hear talked about long before you ever imagine yourself there. This is the story of how I went from my very first dives in warm tropical water to fulfilling a long-held dream: diving the historic wrecks of Scapa Flow.
December 2022 – Where it all began
It all started in the warm, tropical waters of Mauritius. Sitting on a beach all day just isn’t for me, so while my wife and children relaxed, I decided to give scuba diving a try. I signed up for a PADI Open Water course and immediately caught the bug.
At the time, I didn’t realise just how spoiled I was — warm water, incredible visibility, and abundant marine life. I had no idea how different UK diving would be, but I was hooked.
January–February 2023 – Back home, what next?
Returning to the UK, I knew I wanted to continue diving. But how, and where? I was a PADI diver, so I assumed I had to dive only with other PADI divers… right?
After a bit of Googling, I found Aquatechnique and completed two further PADI courses: Advanced Open Water and the much-needed dry suit course (essential for UK diving). After getting the handshake for completing both, I found myself asking, “What now?”
I didn’t want to keep paying for courses — I wanted to actually go diving. The problem was, there were no local PADI clubs in my area.
September 2023 – Finding a club
I remembered seeing a banner at the Pingles Leisure Centre when my children were learning to swim. A quick search led me to Marlin Sub-Aqua Club (MSAC) in Nuneaton. There was just one catch: they trained under a different agency — BSAC.
Would that make a difference with my existing qualifications? In short, yes… but not in a bad way. My PADI Advanced Open Water was roughly equivalent to BSAC Ocean Diver, but I knew that if I wanted to reach Scapa Flow, I’d need to bridge the gap to Sports Diver level.
After an initial email exchange with the club’s membership secretary (Mike Cross), I headed down to Pingles for a taster session to see what BSAC — and the club — were all about.
Straight away, Mike came over, had a chat, and gave me a real insight into the club. I signed up that very night. When someone new joins, making the effort to chat and help them feel welcome is something I really value — and that’s exactly how I felt from day one.
September 2023 – March 2024 – Getting in the water
Now I was part of a BSAC club. The next questions were obvious: I needed kit, and I needed to dive.
After slowly building up my equipment, I joined the club at Stoney Cove for my first dive. It had a very eventful ending — something that still gets mentioned now and again in very good humour. Let’s just call it a learning experience! What stuck with me was how calm and supportive everyone was.
I kept diving at Stoney Cove to build experience and also signed up for Project Baseline shore support to learn more about “diving with a purpose”.
December 2024 – The plan
At this point, I didn’t want to limit myself to quarry diving. I wanted to get some salt on my fins. It came down to a simple question:
What did I want to achieve with the club?
For me, there was only one answer: Scapa Flow.
I can’t recommend this approach enough — decide on a goal, then work backwards. Talk to people in the club and share your ambitions. With advice and support, I put together a training plan focused on what I’d need to safely dive Scapa Flow:
- Sports Diver – required for the depth
- Twin-set – two cylinders for gas redundancy and increased capacity
- Accelerated Decompression Procedure (ADP) – to reduce decompression times
I emailed our Diving Officer, Martin Maple, outlining my plans. He added Buoyancy & Trim and Primary Donate to the list and reassured me that the club could help me achieve my goal.
February 2025 – Training completed
By February, I had completed my Sports Diver and Buoyancy & Trim courses. This opened up the BSAC training tree and made the additional skill development courses I needed available.
But enough training for now — it was time for a trip.
May 2025 – Sound of Mull
My first club trip was to the Sound of Mull, organised by Jamie Vaughan. This trip pushed me well outside my comfort zone and massively increased my experience.
I completed planned decompression stops, gas planning, teamwork exercises, mid-water DSMB (delayed surface marker buoy) deployments, and learned what diving from a boat really involves. It was also when I started diving a twin-set. It felt heavy at first, but underwater the stability was fantastic, and the extra bottom time made a huge difference.
This trip was a major stepping stone towards Scapa Flow — and I’ll be going back again in May 2026.
Between Mull and my next course, I became more involved in Project Baseline and started diving as part of the team. “Diving with a purpose” is incredibly rewarding and something I plan to continue.
September 2025 – Advanced training
Next on the list was the ADP course, completed at Stoney Cove with BSAC National Instructors. This qualification allows you to carry an additional stage cylinder (up to 80% oxygen) to optimise decompression times.
November 2025 – Goal achieved
After a long drive and a ferry crossing, we finally arrived in Orkney.
My goal was complete.
On 2 November at 09:37, I descended beneath the water and reached the SMS Dresden, the first of many wrecks that week. Scapa Flow is not something you do just once — I already know I’ll be back many times.
A full dive report will follow once it’s ready.
Summary & advice
From that first email outlining my plan, it took around 12 months to complete the journey.
If I can offer any advice, it’s this:
Set yourself a goal, do your research, and use the club. Talk to committee members, ask questions, and find people with similar interests — that’s exactly what a club is for.
Thank you to everyone who helped me along the way, offered advice, or simply came along for a dive. There are far too many to name individually.
My roadmap to Scapa Flow
For anyone considering a similar path, this was my personal roadmap:
| Category | Requirement | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Core Qualification | Sports Diver & Buoyancy/Trim | Required for depth, stability, and control |
| Kit Upgrade | Twin-set | Essential for gas redundancy and capacity |
| Advanced Training | ADP (Accelerated Decompression Procedure) | Optimised decompression stops |
| Experience Builder | Sound of Mull trip | Built experience across multiple disciplines |
Scapa Flow may have been the goal — but it’s definitely not the end of the journey.
Nice story Ben. You obviously enjoyed the journey. What’s your next goal. Diving is a never ending story.