By June Coomber
On this last day of 2024 there is no better time to look back on the year while looking forward to the year ahead.
2024 started as it finished, ‘busy,’ due to an excellent response in January from would-be scuba divers enrolling for pool based ‘Try Dive,’ sessions and responses to the club’s outreach activities to local youth groups and charities who come along to enjoy a new experience. Then again, following an autumn open evening, to introduce the club’s new snorkel section, fully booked snorkel courses took us actively through to December. Throughout the year the club’s progressive training program has been successful in extending members diving skills and knowledge so that both scuba and snorkel divers can now safely take pleasure in what the seas have to offer whether it be local shore dive sites such as the river Tees and South Gare headland, or wreck dives from the club’s boat which underwent some major repair work during the spring of 2024. Further afield diving events and trips included UK sites stretching from Scotland to Cornwall and for some, more exotic locations such as Thailand, the Canary Islands and Turkey etc.
An important event of the year was the acceptance of Cleveland Divers into the ‘Saltburn, Cricket, Tennis, Bowls and Scuba Diving Club,’ adding to the range of sports club’s available to the local community. As a result, a joint club ‘Race Night,’ held in November was the highlight of this years social calendar with the event now added to the list of other annual club social events such as the summer barbecue and Christmas gatherings.
January 2025 looks set to be another busy start to the year as this year marks the 47th anniversary of Cleveland Divers. To mark this occasion members of the club aim to dive 47 dive sites around the UK and overseas. With diving trips already planned for Oban, Isle of Arran, together with annual trips to St Abbs, Farne Islands, Beadnell and the Durham Heritage coast it affords exciting opportunities to expand members diving experiences. Along with the usual training curriculum a program of specialised pool events sees members looking forward to a lively year ahead. Why not visit us on Face book ‘The Diving Club-Cleveland,’ to learn more about our club.
