Scalpay Diving Services

Scalpay Diving Services' Anne Jones

Hi, welcome to Scalpay Diving Services. We are based on the Isle of Scalpay. The business is owned and run by Phil Jones aided by his wife Anne (above). They moved to Scalpay in 1996 after having a diving holiday the previous year.

Within easy reach of the Isle of Scalpay are some 60+ islands and the waters of the Little Minch. With such a large number of islands and with such variety of water depths, currents can sometimes be exciting. This does of course provide plenty of high energy sites and aal the life you would expect of them. Add to this the clarity of the waters in this area and you will find yourself in an underwater photographers paradise. The area provides sites to suit all tastes, we have shallow, sandy bays, Kelp forrests, wall dives, offshore reefs and pinnacles as well as the high energy sites. Most of the sites are within 10 - 15 minutes by RHIB. One of the main benefits of such a large number of islands is that a lee shore is always accessible.

The marine life you could expect to see could fill a book (to see some - go to the "location" section of scalpay.com and click in the sea around scalpay, or click on MAP below to go directly). As well as all the usual fish life the Minch in the summer sees Porpoise, Dolphins, Minke Whales, Pilot Whales, Basking Shark, Seals and Otters. We also get an oddity or two, in 1997, a large Leatherback Turtle was caught just up the coast and a sunfish was caught in the Minch.

The high energy sites offer a bewildering array of Anemones and some very large sponges, including Tube Sponges. One of our favourite night dives is the "Octopus Garden", the highest count of Octopuses so far is 20 in one dive. The latest wreck to be added is the "Gulf Star", a carribean registered coaster, which hit a reef approximately 400 yards from our front door. We also have the "Boston Heron" - a steam trawler sunk in 1963. She lies with her bows in 20 metres of water - her front half intact with her stern broken over a rocky slope. She has never been intensly salvaged.

We offer air on site and we have some gear available for hire, packed lunches and hot drinks can be provided and should you need a "buddy" we can oblige. We can advise on accomodation which is very reasonable, we have accomodation to offer ourselves at £15 per person per day - breakfast, snack lunch and evening meal. Scalpay Diving Services are the first to offer organised diving in this area, therefore, there are still many undived sites to explore. We are finding new sites all the time, so if you want extra excitement during your holiday, you could always drop off the boat into totally unknown waters.

If you require any further info or a chat give us a phone or write to :

Scalpay Diving Centre
34 Outend
Isle of Scalpay
Western Isles
Scotland
HS4 3YG

Tel: (+44) 01859 540328

PLEASE MENTION THAT YOU NOTICED US ON SCALPAY.COM.