Plymouth, England, United Kingdom

Bovisand Bay

Bovisand Bay is one of the most popular shore-diving training sites in southern England, located just outside Plymouth Sound's eastern entrance and home to a dive centre that has been running since the 1970s. A sheltered cove with a slipway provides safe entry over a bottom of sand and pebbles into a series of low rocky reefs that extend offshore in 6 to 12 metres of water. The site is heavily used for entry-level training, refreshers and BSAC progression dives because of its protected aspect, easy entry, gentle gradient and reliable conditions. Marine life includes ballan wrasse, corkwing wrasse, pollack, bib, tompot blennies, sand gobies, hermit crabs, edible crabs, spider crabs and the occasional cuttlefish or small spider crab pile in late summer. Plumose anemones, dead man's fingers and snakelocks anemones grow on the reef edges, with kelp forests in the shallows. Visibility ranges from 3 to 8 metres and water temperature varies from 9 to 17 degrees Celsius. Currents are weak inside the bay.