AFTER missing out last year due to coronavirus restrictions, scuba divers were able to get back in the water for a New Year’s Day tradition.
The pandemic interrupted a 15-year run of divers plunging into Hinksey Lake.
However, Oxford BSAC Scuba Diving Club returned to the water for the New Year’s Day ritual.
In the past, bikes, traffic cones and even a paddle boat have been retrieved from the lake, alas that was not the case this year.
Club president Andy Pickering said: “We weren’t able to do it last year due to the lockdown, so it was nice to get back into the lake.
“It’s a lot more weedy and there’s a bit less life than two years ago, when we were bumping into crayfish left, right and centre.
“Visibility was good though – about five metres which is as good as it gets.
“We found a bike and the usual pile of bottles, but no paddle boats this year.”
Four pairs of divers took the plunge, plus a dozen or so family members and friends watched on.
Mr Pickering said: “People came along to have a chat and see others they haven’t seen for a while, comparing Christmases and New Years.
“There were a few sore heads but they still came down to support us.
“It was quite mild – we’ve had years when we’ve had to crack the lake with an axe.
“The water temperature was seven or eight degrees which isn’t bad, it’s gone down to three or four in the past and you usually get a shock when you dive in at those temperatures.”
For a landlocked city, scuba diving may seem an odd activity but Mr Pickering explained the club is still able to hold regular dives.
He said: “You’d be surprised the number of clubs in the centre of England.
“Usually every other weekend in the summer, we organise dives and we’ll take a weekend or long weekend at the coast.
“It’s not like other branches on the coast who can just go out when it’s good weather, it requires a bit more planning.”
Mr Pickering joined the club in 1980, with new recruits always welcome.
“We’re pulling together our dive programme for the year with one or two expeditions, including one to Egypt in March, plus various locations on the south coast in the summer,” he said.
“There’s a set course we run for new divers, the way we do it is over a number of weeks, starting from a complete novice to an entry level diver.
“It probably takes a couple of months, with a number of lectures plus theory and practical that you need to do.
“If anyone wants to come and learn to dive, then we’re here. Our next beginners’ course is planned to start towards the end of February or into March, which will get you qualified in time for the warmer weather.”
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