From the big stuff Sharks (Basking Shark 7- 9 meters long- which eat the smallest things in the water - Plankton) to Nudibranch or sea slugs we have the best and most colourful stuff to see. Bring a little torch and the colour is amazing.

You don’t need to be an Olympic swimmer but you need to be confidant; there is a pool test which most people pass. Swim a few lengths at your own leisure be able to hold your head under water for a few seconds.

During your pool training you can borrow members gear, but a set of fins mask and snorkel will be sufficient for the first few weeks. It is by trying peoples gear you can decided what is best for you. Diving gear can be a cheap or as dear as your pocket will allow. Second hand gear is always a good option.

The north Atlantic Drift or Gulf Stream gives Ireland its mild climate; this keeps the water at around 8C in winter and up to 18c in the summer.  With a good fitting suit you can stay very comfortable for 40 minutes in winter and over 60 minutes in summer.

Besides deep commercial diving, with the use of breathing mixtures different than air, where there can be a problem with High Pressure Nervous Syndrome (HPNS) the known limits regarding speed of descent are related to:
A: pressure equalization in the middle ear and paranasal sinus cavities
B: for quite deep diving, a certain higher susceptibility of certain individuals to nitrogen narcosis when the exposure time is very fast.
Generally speaking the issue of speed of descent is a self limited one, as the speed that you can physiologically obtain, while equalizing and even swimming down relatively fast is generally slow enough to be physiologically safe.
On another level, the slower the descent, the smaller the inert gas uptake at the maximal partial pressures and the less exposure. This may be significant in case of a square, table dive, calculated on the assumption of the entire time spent at the maximal depth.