Where to Dive off the Norfolk Coast
Where to Dive off the Norfolk Coast
by Katie Thompson
Ours is a county with 90 miles of coastline to explore. Whether it’s walks, beaches or wild swimming, there’s nothing more rejuvenating than getting outside and immersing yourself in Norfolk’s nature.
So, what about heading beneath the waves? Norfolk boasts a selection of beautiful scuba diving spots where the deep blue holds a world of life and history. From late spring to early autumn, walk in from the shore and you’ll be greeted by curious and colourful marine life and wrecks clad in barnacles, each one with a story to tell.
This is where to dive off the Norfolk coast!
“We’re lucky that we can dive so close to home off the Norfolk coast. It’s special because it’s so near and unexpected, yet so colourful and full of marine life, too.” – local diver, John Thompson.
Images: Bernard Bialczak
Take care when diving off the Norfolk coast. The tides are strong, so dive only at slack water with the right equipment and proper training to avoid potential dangers.
Lobsters are just one of many crustaceans and creatures that call the Norfolk coast their home
Diving in Norfolk
Head to North Norfolk between Cromer and Cley, the North Sea hides underwater treasures. There’s the Norfolk Chalk Reef or Cromer Shoal Chalk Bed, Europe’s largest- it’s bigger than the Broads National Park- and dubbed ‘Britain’s Great Barrier Reef’. It teems with fish, crustaceans and plants, and is now a Marine Conservation Zone. (It’s here you’ll find the famous Cromer crab, a staple of Norfolk’s seasonal produce, and it’s great for snorkelers, too!) Further west, you’ll discover the Rosalie and the Vera, two wrecks dating back to WWI.
Meanwhile, Blakeney Point is set to become home to Europe’s largest oyster reef as four million native oysters will be returned to the seabed, boosting the ecosystem with clearer waters and richer biodiversity.
Worth knowing: further afield (on the east Norfolk coast), only recently was it revealed that the Stuart-era frigate Gloucester was finally located approximately 30 miles off the coast of Great Yarmouth by divers, 140 years after it struck a sandbank and sank (the site is currently closed to diving due to undergoing research).
So, when is the best time to dive off the Norfolk coast?With the weather a key factor, shore diving is at its peak from late spring to early autumn– think the end of May to the beginning of September. When there’s little or no wind, or it’s directed from the south or west, there’s less swell, meaning calmer water and longer visibility (and it’s easier getting in and out!). Make sure to stay up to date with the tides and slack water times.
One of our favourite times to visit the Norfolk coast is late summer- when the sea is an almost-unbelievably vivid turquoise!
There’s a whole world of vivid sea life beneath the waves of the North Sea
Where to Dive
Sheringham and East Runton
Just off the North Norfolk coast at Sheringham is a section of the 20-mile Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds. To get there, park on the town’s Esplanade, head down onto the promenade and straight onto the shingle. (The town’s lobster pots give away its location!)
The reef’s gullies are shallow ridges and ledges, busy with wildlife. Think terracotta-red crabs, starfish, lobsters and pulsing moon jellyfish. You’ll also encounter sea creatures you might not expect, including neon wrasse fish and the less elegant scorpionfish (keep your eyes peeled to spot is camouflage), as well as bobtail squid and even endangered European eels. When it comes to invertebrates, be captivated by bright sea anemones, purple sponge and pink sea fan coral.
Three miles east is East Runton, a long sandy beach bordered by the North Sea on one side and chalk cliffs concealing (quite literally) prehistoric geological history on the other. With mammoth fossils discovered not far away at West Runton (a great spot to rockpool at low tide, by the way), it’s no surprise that the reef is also millions of years old.
Under the warm sea, glide over tunnels, caves, arches and chasms as old as the Ice Age, features that make the perfect crevices for such a diverse and eye-catching array of creatures. To get here, park at the main beach car park and follow the slipway down, bringing you to the water’s edge.
Moon jellyfish are a common sight for divers, snorkelers, swimmers and walkers!
Cley
Further north along the coast we get onto shipwrecks now! At Cley, all you need to do is walk east from the beach car park for approximately 400 metres (or until the right of the wreckage is visible above the waves) and swim out to the Vera, seven metres below.
Built in 1891 in Whitby, the Vera was a steam ship used for transporting cargo, such as coal. But in 1914, during WWI, the Vera was involved in a collision with minesweeper HMS Parthian. Despite being beached at Cley, the steamer didn’t float again and was instead salvaged.
Today, the engine is the best feature to see, along with its propeller shaft and boiler. Here, wildlife thrives, with tiny porcelain crabs, pipefish, bib fish and shoals of bass and mackerel not uncommon!
The Rosalie at Weybourne is one of two WWI shore dives on the North Norfolk coast
Weybourne
And at Weybourne, you’ll encounter another WWI-era shipwreck: the Rosalie. Lost to much more dramatic circumstances, the Rosalie was torpedoed by an unseen German submarine U Boat in 1915 (it was in this year that the first bomb dropped on Britain during the war fell in Sheringham). Luckily, as with the Vera, no lives were lost, perhaps due to a second torpedo missing and failing to explode. The steamer was abandoned, towed, beached and left at Weybourne.
The Rosalie is a scenic dive and easy to navigate, with the bottom exposed and the bow pointing towards the shore. Sea life is abundant- lobsters, crabs, starfish and more make the wreck their home. Remember to look out for the mushroom-like plumose anemones!
