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Dive West Scotland by Lawson Wood
Dive West Scotland by Lawson Wood
Lawson Wood has to be commended for trying to cover the entire west coast of Scotland in a single guide, Dive West Scotland. He describes 127 saltwater dives and three inland sites in this book and, unlike those guides that have in the past focused on wrecks, he has included a swathe of scenic sites. All are enthused about from the perspective of an underwater photographer.
The sites are set out in six sections, in a style similar to that of previous Guides. Levels of experience required for each dive are given and sites graded in terms of difficulty.
I have dived some of the sites in the book and on these found myself in agreement with Wood's observations - except over An-t-Iasgaair where, unlike him, I noted loads of fish life. I found diving this site very intense, and experienced both up- and downcurrents there. The book mentions the strong currents and the need to get your buoyancy right at depth to enjoy this site.
Trying to cover the whole of west Scotland has left the coverage of sites thin and patchy. A few hotspots exist further north, such as the Summer Isles, but even here the excellent wreck of the Fairweather doesn't make it into this guide.
I feel that this book is fine if regarded simply as an appetiser for the immense area it attempts to cover, because it will inform you about the area or island you are considering visiting. But a few large-scale diagrams to help identify the sites would have improved it as a guide.
Mike Clark
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Dive West Scotland by Lawson Wood (Underwater World Publications, 0946020361). Softback, 192pp. £14.95
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