Budleigh Salterton

A good relaxed reef dive from shore with Derek's son, Chris. Snorkelled out a short way then to the bottom and straight out over fine sand (keeping sun on right) to the shallow (5m) stony reef. On the way out there were big and small hermit crabs; and the usual sort of thing, gobies, worm casts etc. Shortly after finding the reef we saw a dog fish. There were lots of velvet fiddler crabs, some edible crabs, shore crabs, also a spidery spider crab, and the usual 'giant' spider crab. Chris found a spider crab shell heavily encrusted and blending into the surrounding rubble and weed - it was about a foot across - but motionless and perhaps dead - then suddenly it lunged, with its claws out and amidst a cloud of silt it was a real monster!

Found some anenomes - not many - the small white ones, and embedded in the sand a grey/white dahlia anenome. Later in the dive we encountered some misty patches and the light was falling. I had two torches and gave one to Chris.

On the way back I found a masked crab. The reef was certainly very crabby! It was good watching them. I took a few pictures but once again (despite some fiddling with the fibre optic cable and attaching it carefully - and prior testing) could not get it to fire consistently underwater. By the time we got out, after a dive of nearly 1hr 20min, it was almost dark.

Budleigh Salterton beach is very nice, I like pebbly beaches, but parking at the car park at the end of the seafront is a bit expensive and you have to pay round the clock. The chip shop is very good apparently - but I don't know - I didn't have any!