There was a keen sense of anticipation at the Haslemere Leisure Centre poolside as nine young Explorer Scouts were kitted out with all the scuba gear they needed to descend to the bottom of the pool and swim around breathing underwater!

This was not the usual Thursday evening training session for Haslemere Sub Aqua Club, but a “try dive“ evening put on for a local Explorer Scout group. The Scouts listened intently to the safety briefing from Diving Officer, Mike Trussler, before taking the plunge.

Each of the 14/15 year old Scouts had a one-to-one session with one of the Club’s instructors, learning how to adjust their buoyancy, how to breathe through the diving regulator mouthpiece, how to stop their masks from misting up, how to equalise the pressure in their ears, and the importance of breathing normally without ever holding their breath. Some progressed to the key skills of clearing water from their mask and regulator, and even to doing underwater somersaults.

There were broad smiles as each group of young people surfaced after their diving experience to hand over kit and instructors to the next group.

“Everyone seemed to have a great evening, Club members and Scouts alike, and there were certainly some natural divers in the group” said Bryony Chapman, one of the instructors, “I hope some of them will take up diving in the future – it’s an immensely enjoyable and sociable sport.”