A VERY BRIEF HISTORY OF SCUBA DIVING

At some stage, way back at the beginning of time, early man realised that food could be obtained camping from the sea. Some archaeologist claim that Neanderthal man dived for food. Whether they dived, or simply gathered food, such as shellfish, while wading at low tide, we cannot be certain.

The ancient Greeks depict divers engaged in military activities, and diving for sponges. The legend of Scyllis, and his daughter Cyana, disabling Xerxes fleet by cutting the ships anchor lines, is well known.

The most famous account of a diver breathing underwater is in the story of Alexander the Great, descending in a glass barrel to observe his divers clearing underwater obstacles, in the harbour of Tyre.

By the first centuary BCE there was a thriving diving salvage industry in the Eastern Mediterranean. A scale of payment, acknowledging that effort and risk increased with depth, was legislated by the Greeks!

Even Leonardo da Vinci would try his hand at conquering the underwater realm. In 1535 Guglielmo de Loreno developed what is considered the first true diving bell, which he used to explore sunken ships. Steady improvement, and some disasters, marked the progress of diving over the next few hundred years. By 1843 the Royal Navy had established the first diving school. Diving was a commercial enterprise, not for pleasure!

The research of Paul Bert, Lorraine-Smith, Haldane et al, Boyle, Henry, and others, gradually led to a better understanding of the physiology , and physics, of diving.

It was with the development of the demand valve, by Cousteau and Gagnan, in the early 1940’s, the Aqua-lung came of age, and recreational diving became a viable option.

Photographers, and filmmakers, like Haas, Cousteau, Dumas and others began to popularise the underwater adventure in the 1950’s, attracting ever more people to the sport of scuba diving. In 1954, Octopush, the forerunner of underwater hockey, was developed by US Navy divers as a fun way to keeping fit.

Since the formation of various diving agencies, YMCA, CMAS, NAUI, PADI, and others, in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, recreational diving has never looked back! Today diving is a multi-million dollar industry, and growing.

Marilyn Monroe died. The Beatles released their first record.

The American involvement in the Vietnam War was hotting up.The Rolling Stones were only just getting started. Nelson Mandela was arrested in Howick, KZN. The first James Bond movie, Dr. No, was released. J.F. Kennedy announced that before the end of the decade America was going to put a man on the moon.

It was the time of Make Love, not War, and scuba diving was considered a dangerous sport for crazy people called frogmen. Sex was safe and diving was dangerous.

These were the days when dive sites still had to be discovered and much home made equipment was being used. The introduction of the Normalair Diving Set led to the forming and naming of Normalair Underwater Club by some of the pioneers of the diving industry in South Africa on 1 April 1962. Club meetings took place at Shell House, Johannesburg, the present home of the ANC, and members wore ties to the meetings!

The clubhouse at Emmarentia Dam was built in 1963. 1964 saw the first trip to Sinoia Caves, the first underwater hockey tournament and the first diving course held at NUC.

In 1965 the compressor room was added and the first official NUC Newsletter, The Blue Fish, was published. Since then the clubhouse has been renovated a number of times, a toilet has been added, we acquired a boat for sunset cruises on the dam, the club has produced many underwater hockey and spear fishing Springboks, got involved in free diving, qualified hundred of scuba divers, and members have been on dive trips all around the world.

A detailed history of the club, and diving as we know it at Normalair Underwater Club, is currently being written, and this page will be updated regularly.

Anybody with contributions, either photographs or information, should please contact Mark Botha ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) or Daleen Potgieter ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ).

SCUBA DIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA

Today, the three major agencies training divers in South Africa are, CMAS, NAUI and PADI.

Normalair Underwater Club ( NUC ) presents CMAS training courses. NUC is a social, non-profit, diving club, one of the oldest diving clubs in the country.

Scuba diving in South Africa is divided between inland and coastal dive sites.

INLAND DIVING, NEAR JOHANNESBURG.

The popular inland dive spots frequented by NUC are Bass Lake, Marico Oog, Miracle Waters, Wondergat, and Bass Lake.

Al l are, on average, a 1 – 2 hour drive from Johannesburg, and they are often used as training venues, as well as being a viable alternative for divers who cannot get to the coast often enough!

MARICO OOG

Marico Oog is a natural spring close to the towns of Groot Marico and Zeerust. The water is crystal clear with lilies growing in abundance, and floating on the water surface. The water is so clear one can see the full moon from underwater on a night dive. One enters the water from a deck surrounded by reeds, and dives between the lilly fronds to the centre of the ‘oog’, situated at a depth of about 14 metres. A training grid is suspended at a depth of 5 meters. The ‘oog’ resembles a water nymph’s playground with the sun shining through the curling underwater roots of the lilies and soft moss growing on the bottom. A fence through the middle of the ‘oog’ bears testimony to a feud between the two farmers on whose land the site is situated!

There are two rondavels for rent, rolling green lawns to camp on, and it is a highly recommended dive site. At present no facility to refill dive cylinders is available. A trip to Marico Oog usually involves sundowners on the pont on the ‘oog’, and a mampoer tasting on one of the nearby farms.

MIRACLE WATERS

Miracle Waters is situated close to Brits and is primarily used for training purposes. It is an old granite quarry and the maximum depth is approximately 30 metres. The water is reached by walking down easy declines. Various items of interest have been submerged in this flooded quarry. These include an aeroplane, a desk and telephone, a bus, a yacht, a toilet and a helicopter. Most divers have the requisite photograph of themselves driving the bus, sitting behind the desk, and on the toilet, as part of their collection....

Containers have been outfitted as accommodation and the ablution facilities are of a good standard. Refills are available on site, and there are good facilities for braaing and picnicking, and Brits is close enough for a meal if you do not want to braai.

WONDERGAT

Wondergat, a collapsed sink hole between Lichtenburg and Mafeking, has been the scene of many a great NUC diving week-end. The depth varies with the level of the surrounding water table. The ‘bottom’ is usually at about 38 meters, and, only if you have the necessary qualification, you may enter the cave, going as deep as 60 meters. It is this unique feature, combined with rash decision making on the part of some divers, that has also given Wondergat its darker reputation.

Serviced campsites, and good ablution and cylinder refill facilities, make this a pleasant dive site for a weekend away from Johannesburg.

BASS LAKE

This abandoned and flooded quarry, situated near Meyersdal, is one of the original training venues, dating back to ‘the early years’. The owners are constantly upgrading the site, with numerous large lapas, a shop, and cylinder refill facilities. One may also overnight at this site. Numerous objects have also been submerged in the quarry, and the maximum depth is about 28 meters. It is considered as the training venue ‘du jour’.

COASTAL DIVING

NUC’s coastal diving mainly takes place at Sodwana Bay, the Natal south coast, and southern Mozambique. Trips to further north in Mozambique, as well as the Cape, also take place from time to time.

Dive planning usually takes place the night before the dive, when boat positions are allocated, and launch times are decided. Diving usually begins early in the morning – from 06:00 onwards. Once at the beach the divers’ kit up and the dive master begins his, or her, briefing. The dive briefing consists of a description of the reef, safety procedures, buddy allocation, expected dive duration, and expected dive depth. The divemaster will usually also describes what marine life one can expect to encounter on that specific reef.

The dive gear is secured on the boat which is then pushed into the sea under the skippers guidance. Ladies board first, followed by the men. Life jackets are handed out and worn until the boat is through the surf-line. Once the dive site has been reached , the divers’ kit up, the skipper positions the boat as close to the chosen dive spot as possible, and on his command the divers enter the water, usually doing a backward roll.

After the dive the skipper will relieve the diver of their weightbelt, BCD and cylinder, prior to assisting them to board the boat again. Once everybody is back on board, sweets are handed out to get the salt water taste out of your mouth

We usually do 2 dives per day, weather permitting, followed by a hearty brunch back at the dive camp, or one can picnic on the beach. NUC has numerous favourite sundowner spots at all our coastal dive venues. The evening braai usually carries on late into the night, when tall dive stories are retold, while we joke around, and plan our next dive.