Karen’s jumps in at the deep end

Karen Flannery has recently featured on two programmes with Iolo Williams on diving around the Welsh coastline and also been involved on another TV show where she is an adviser with regard to diving, both involvements showing how high is the esteem in which she is held in the world of diving.
If ever anyone would like to find out a little more about diving around the coastline of Pembrokeshire then she is undoubtedly one of the top people that could provide a wealth of information on all aspects of this activity, including not only the technical aspects and equipment, but other matters like safety, conservation general respect for the waters around our county.

Early experiences

Karen Flannery is a keen diver and ace instructor who first learnt to dive whilst at Swansea University at the age of 20, where she studied Mechanical Engineering, although prior to this she had enjoyed other water activities like kayaking, swimming and life saving.  Her first open water dive was done in the cold, dark and life-less waters of Lliw Valley Reservoir (near Swansea), but despite the scary venue she became instantly addicted to the underwater experience.
She then ventured to Eilat in Israel for a diving holiday, where she was amazed at the splendour of the marine life, and hence she got a bug for traveling as well as diving. As a result, Karen then proceeded to further her dive training, most of which was completed in the United Kingdom, especially around the coast of Pembrokeshire, and her wide range of experience until she became an instructor.

Wonderful trips

After finishing her degree, Karen then ventured around the world, working as a dive instructor, visiting places like California, Hawaii, Fiji, Cook Islands, New Zealand and Australia before securing a three-year contract running a dive centre on the paradise island of Castaway in Fiji. It was a place she will never forget because of the wonderful things she saw under the waters there.
On returning to the UK some three and a half years later, she returned to University to do a post-graduate teacher’s training degree in Maths, whilst she had her daughter Grace, who is now six years old.

Dive school start and ultimate aim achieved

After Grace was born, Karen started a dive school, and two years later, in February 2005 she bought West Wales Dive Centre, which she still owns. From this centre she teaches dive courses, runs boat charters, offers bed and breakfast for 24 people and has a retail outlet.
Last year she achieved her final goal, and that was to become a Course Director, which is the highest certificate she could achieve in the industry. Karen is understandably very proud of this as she is presently the only one in Wales and one of only a few nationally. This enables her to teach people to become Dive Instructors and First Aid Instructors, and to act as a source of expertise in her field.

Amazing experiences

Some of the highlights of her diving life include some amazing experiences. As she told us, “I will never forget feeding bull sharks in Fiji, being kissed on the nose by a turtle in Hawaii, being bitten gently by a dolphin in Egypt and taken for a swim with my hand still in its mouth, having a seal nibble at my fins and lift my hood gently from my head in Pembrokeshire. I also loved night diving around the famous wreck of the Thistlegorm in Egypt and being at the centre of a thousands of schooling giant barracuda in Sipadan, Borneo.”
Even though she have been diving for many years all over the world, there is still plenty she hasn’t experienced and her ambitions include diving under the ice caps of the Arctic Circle, as well as heading off to dive the Second World War wrecks of Scapa Flow in Scotland.

Nothing like Pembrokeshire

Having said all that, Karen would say that Pembrokeshire is still one of her favourite places to dive.
“There is nothing better on a summer’s evening than launching the boat from Little Haven, and driving out to Stack Rocks with some friends to have a relaxing dip. No two dives are ever the same, so there is always a feeling of anticipation and excitement of what well find, and then on returning to the beach, to wash the salt away. The evening is finished off with a friendly pint drunk at the water’s edge. There is nothing better in life.”

Facts for would-be divers:

** Diving requires the use of a life support system - SCUBA (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus). This includes a breathing regulator, buoyancy device and a cylinder of air. You will also require a thick wetsuit or preferably a dry suit, mask, fins, snorkel and a lead weight system. Although costly initially (around £1000) it can last a life-time. Alternatively it can be hired or bought at bargain rates second hand.

** Diving sometimes has bad press, but the accident rate is actually less than getting a lightening strike. All equipment has a fail-safe set-up, and back-up devices should there be a malfunction. However, with regular maintenance and servicing this is extremely rare. Sometimes accidents happen due to human stupidity, like diving outside your experience levels in bad conditions, in strong currents or too deep. Most people, however, value their lives and so don’t dive dangerously.

 ** There are numerous courses offered by Diving organizations, from entry level to instructor level and the most popular world-wide recognised certification is the PADI Open Water course, which is offered to anybody over the age of 10, with no previous experience and in good health. There are some medical conditions that prove detrimental to diving, like asthma, epilepsy and heart conditions but physical disabilities don’t necessarily stop you from diving. After this course there are a range of courses to continue your education, including Advanced Diver, Rescue Diver, Dive Master and many specialties like Wreck Diver and Deep Diver. A lot of divers take up underwater photography that requires the use of special waterproof housings, which are affordable these days with the flood of modern technology.

 ** The Pembrokeshire coastline offers some of the best diving in the UK because of  the Gulf stream, which passes us right by, our waters abound with marine life of different species (including some unlikely Mediterranean species like Sun Fish and Trigger Fish),  so much so that part of it has been given the sanctuary of a protected Marine Park, one of only two in the UK - namely the Skomer National Marine Reserve SNMR.

** There are numerous Seal colonies in this area, which are one of the biggest attractions to divers. Unlike sharks and other larger species, seals are playful and interactive, and never cease to astound divers. There are plenty of other attractions like porpoise, dolphins, whales and puffins which are always a source of entertainment on boat trips to and from dive sites. Once underwater you can be greeted with a variety of crustaceans like spider crabs, lobster and cray fish; an array of fish like bass, pollock and wrasse; plus rare forms of corals and sponges like the famous pink sea fan. Generally, Underwater Pembrokeshire looks like an underwater forest of dancing kelp, intermingled with colourful and intriguing creatures that could be from a different world. All of this wrapped up with floating weightless in this 3D world, breathing effortlessly, makes both an epic and tranquil experience.

 **Some of the other benefits of diving in Pembrokeshire are that there is easy access to shore dives in the marine reserve and all around Pembrokeshire, some of which include St Brides Bay, Stackpole Quay and Martins Haven. Divers are able to park up and just walk into a desirable depth of water within a close distance of the shore, hence avoiding long surface swims. Martins Haven in the Marine Reserve, is one of the deepest shore dives in Britain and attracts divers nationwide. Boat diving is also popular, as it offers the opportunity to explore a variety of wrecks and reefs off shore. Again, the close proximity of the dive sites to shore enables divers to spend more time underwater than above, than they would on long boat journeys often encountered elsewhere in the UK.

** Pembrokeshire is also famous for its wreck diving, with a documented 300 or so wrecks sunk in different situations over many years. Besides the marine life, diving also creates an incredible social scene. It attracts people from all walks of life who bond together with a common interest and a desire to keep each other safe in a somewhat uninhabitable world. There is often more activity above water than below with social events, world-wide holidays and club nights. It is often said that diving becomes a life changing experience. Just like Karen found out!