Hi Frank,
It seems that there are good few cave divers around here in Ireland but only very few who actually do any diving in Ireland (which is really a shame since that side of Ireland seems to be still mainly undiscovered despite continuous efforts of few stubborn foreigners to change it)
But from my little experience if you are passionate about cave diving and exploring places never visited before you will find Ireland as a Cave Diving Heaven ( I?ve got the feeling that with this statement I?ve just open Pandora?s box?what to do, alea iacta est?)
And I strongly believe that quite a bit of it can be done with back mounted configuration. First of all once you?re come back from Italy you should definitely visit Hell Complex in co. Clare. Most parts of Hell complex at Doolin Point are twinset accessible and constitute one of the best cavern diving in Europe. Knowing the fact that you are in underwater photography you?ll find this place truly amazing? If you are more into the exploration all I can say is that this place has still lot of secrets to reveal : last June and July few weekends spent there resulted in 250m of new passages surveyed and discovery of long seek connection between Reef Caves complex and Hell complex. And who knows what lies behind Merrow?s Mirth or 935m point in Mermaid?s Hole ( here however side mounted 12?s or 15?s are must).There are few exciting projects around the country - guys on rebreathers are exploring underground river upstream from Pollloughabo in Gort Lowlands, downstream you?ve got Dark Shamrock Travers for over 800m (and possibly back as you won?t be able to get out through letter box squeeze in Pollbehan with twinset but?you never know
); not far from that you have another marvellous underground river traverse from Cannahowna River cave to The Churn ? one of the collapsed doolins and the explorations upstream from it is still in its infancy. Aille River and Coole River could be another example for exciting explorations possible with back mounted configuration. Big resurgences of Tipperary are still waiting for its? conqueror?and FRANKLY saying you have much bigger chances to be the one than the other lads on this forum since from statistical point of view most of the prominent explorers in Irish cave diving were foreigners...
No offence lads?
For very wet and windy days you still have third option ? abandoned and now flooded mines. Good few of them in Tipperary, Cork, Waterford and Wicklow (this is where I?ve been but obviously there must be much more waiting to be ?re-discovered? as dive sites) with flooded levels up to 60m of depth. My buddy Tom Malone and me started exploring these sites with side mounted sevens then we moved to twelves only to discover finally that some of them like Coughlan Mine are just made for big twinset (thanks Graham!) and stages.
Ok. The vis is often far from perfect (to say at least), agreed. It?s neither Florida nor Mexico. But having said that there are exceptions as well - last year we enjoyed 40m visibility in Noxon Park Mine - not bad at all I?d say? And all of that without splitting your twinset and mounting the bottles on your hips or under your arms?however if you decide to go this way then (sorry for using this old PADI cliché) ? POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS
And I trully believe in that as I just can?t wait next Friday?
Having said all that I must admit that I'm a bit jealous of your last experience Mark and I'd love to do CCR cave with Rich Stevenson at some stage this year...( parole parole...
Artur
(just another Polish bastard in the country)
