Day 19 – Capernwray Diving Centre

20 November

Capernwray Diving Centre in Carnforth is a former limestone quarry that’s now a popular diving and open-water swimming site. Before and during The Great Scuba Drive, we’d heard countless glowing reviews about Capernwray. It’s well known among northern divers as a favourite spot for both recreational diving and training, so we were really looking forward to finally seeing it for ourselves.

We woke to a bitterly cold morning to find our drysuits completely frozen in place, they looked like reclining mannequins. Even our gloves had lumps of ice attached to them. It took a little extra time and effort to get our kit ready today!

We were meeting Mark Evans from Scuba Diver Magazine at Capernwray, one of his local sites. Joining us were his son Luke and his friend Dylan, the duo that we’d dived with earlier in the week at Delph. It was great to have such fun and familiar company for the day.

When we arrived, the air temperature was just 3°C, while the water temperature sat at a much more comfortable 11°C. As we’ve discovered this week, the real challenge isn’t staying warm during the dive, it’s staying warm between dives. Today looked like it would be no different.

Capernwray is vast. Even after two dives, we knew we’d only be scratching the surface. Along with Vobster, it’s one of the few quarry dives we’ve visited that genuinely feels too large to cover in a single day.

Visibility was excellent, around 15 metres, thanks to the small gravel on the lakebed, which doesn’t easily stir up. The crisp winter sunshine added to the clarity and made for perfect light underwater.

On our first dive, which lasted about 50 minutes, we explored a Hawker Siddeley 848 airliner, a massive structure that was great fun to swim through. We also saw a minesweeper, a Cessna airplane, the Ted Tandy boat, and an oil rig. The lake was wonderfully peaceful. Even though it was midweek in November, it’s so big that we suspect that it would never feel crowded.

Between dives, we took time to enjoy the excellent facilities at Capernwray: a well- stocked dive shop, a dive service centre, and a café with panoramic views over the lake. The café’s large glass windows made it a relaxing place to thaw out and refuel before our second dive. Sophie was delighted with her hot chocolate, rating it second only to the one at Wastwater yesterday, while Rico gave his burger top marks.

Our second dive, also around 50 minutes, took us back to the plane for a little more exploring before we discovered an old Apeks delivery van, a special sight for us since Apeks are one of our sponsors. We also came across Shergar and Lord Lucan (two fibreglass horses from Blackpool), Thunderbird 4, and a She Devil statue, a fun mix of submerged curiosities.

Unlike some other quarry dives, the aquatic life at Capernwray was just as impressive as the sunken features. In the shallows, we encountered several sturgeon, many of them enormous. Their prehistoric appearance was astonishing, and they were completely unbothered by our presence, swimming right up to us with remarkable curiosity.

The highlights of the day were definitely exploring the plane and meeting the inquisitive sturgeon. There was a wonderful moment of surrealism when we were inside the aircraft, it almost felt like we were flying instead of diving.

On the dives we reached a maximum depth of 18 metres, with an average of around 9 metres. It was an unforgettable day: brilliant company, great visibility, and a fantastic dive site that more than lived up to its reputation. Even far from home, it reminded us how strong and welcoming the UK dive community is.

After almost 3 weeks on the road, today felt like a reward. Capernwray was everything we’d heard and more, not just a dive site, but a gathering place for divers who share a genuine passion for the sport. The warmth of the people we met matched the quality of the diving itself.

Days like this remind us why the diving community feels like a family. Whether in Cornwall, Wales, or here in Lancashire, every stop on The Great Scuba Drive has shown us how generous divers are with their time, advice, and enthusiasm.