'Unforgettable day of diving' for Scarborough Sub Aqua Club 83

Matt Newsome organised a dive trip to the World War One minesweeper wreck, HMT Orianda, which sank in 1914, saying that the wreck was dived as part of an ongoing survey project in collaboration with the Scarborough Maritime Heritage Centre.

The club reported on its Facebook page: “On our way to the dive site, we spotted a seal bobbing along in the water, clearly enjoying itself.

“We watched it for a moment before continuing on to the wreck.

“Once we were anchored, Matt and Matt suited up and began their dive.

"About halfway through, we noticed the same seal in the distance, gradually making its way towards our boat.

"It circled around us, curious and playful, stopping to have a look at what we were up to.

"As the two Matts were on their safety stop, the seal swam down to them and started nibbling on Matthew Parker’s fins.

"At first, he thought he’d accidentally kicked his dive buddy or the line, but quickly realised it was the seal having a bit of fun.

"He was quite surprised, letting out a scream, as you wouldn’t expect to find a seal so close.”

Both of the divers returned to the boat buzzing with excitement, eager to share their seal encounter with other members.

The club takes care to ensure that members don’t go anywhere near seal colonies during dives.

Despite the visibility being only about 3m, they reported that the wreck is a "cracking dive site”, with the stern section, steering quadrant, and rudder post still intact with an “amazing” amount of crustacean life on the wreck.

“Next, Ben and I got ready for our dive and descended to 22m to explore the wreck.

“To our surprise, our new dive buddy, the seal, joined us again, tugging at our fins and curiously observing our every move.

“I didn’t expect it to dive so deep with us.

“After about 10 minutes of playful interaction, the seal seemed to lose interest and swam off.

“We continued exploring the wreck and were impressed by the variety of crustacean and other marine life living on the wreck.

“A big thank you to everyone for an unforgettable day of diving!”