Take a scroll through our calendar of events. This page is intended to give viewers a glimpse into what UCD SAC has planned for 2020.
UCD Sub-Aqua is proud to present the trip of a life time! We’ll be off the the tropical paradise that is….MALIN BEG! 
This dive & snorkel weekend will consist of Sun, Sea and the best craic imaginable! *(Sun not not included)* We will be staying the the best accommodation around, Áras Ghleann Cholm Cille. Known for it’s 5* self-catering service you will not want to miss.
Our annual trainee weekend, and our favourite trip of the year! If you’re an aspiring 1 star then this trip is a requirement. The main focus of the weekend is to qualify all of our trainees to 1 star Scuba Divers. If you’re an avid can drinker and/or boat racer* this trip is also a requirement for you!
Diving – We will be shore diving from Malinbeg Pier. Our maximum achievable depth will be approximately 10m. The profile of the seafloor is sandy, and if we’re lucky, the water can be crystal clear! Our buddies from DCU SAC also dive off of Malinbeg pier this weekend, so there tends to be a few healthy inter-club dance offs on the pier whole kitting up!
Surroundings– Our regular accommodation is Áras Ghleann Cholm Cille. It is self-catering, so if you can cook you’re more than welcome! Feasts and pints will be had by the many. The nearest pub is 10 mins by bus (sing-song en route is tradition), and the nearest ATM is in Killybegs (the point of the journey where civilisation stops and waves you on your way).
*A 2019 rendition of the historic Boat Race!
In this race against time, scuba peers are faced with the challenge of locating the clue at the end of the shot line!
Teams enter from opposite sides of the bay and submerge to go head-to-head towards their designated markers throughout the centre of the bay. When a team locates their shot line, they must read their riddle clue attached to the weight, transcribe it on their diving slate and bring it to their team onshore. Then the second (and possibly third) subsequent teams must do the same, with the riddle clues changing every time between by our crew on the water. At the end of the relay exercise, each whole club must solve their riddle by putting each separate clue together.
Oh, and how do we follow their progress while underwater, you ask? Well by attaching funny recognisable SMBs to each team of divers!
Onshore there will be food, music, and games to keep up the competitive spirit while the divers are in the water, and afterward, awards will be presented over dinner and pints, then straight to coppers (wristbands pending)! So, join us for a day of unbeatable craic, but remember to bring your competitive side.
A 24-hour relay for charity hosted by UCD! The event is basically a giant fundraiser for the Irish Cancer Society, with funds going towards research, patient support services and all other activities offered by the Irish Cancer Society. The event usually lasts from midday to midday. Team members and non-team members alike congregate on the Astroturf where there loads of fun activities throughout the night e.g. performances, egg-and-spoon or three-legged races, sports matches. To keep people doing laps of the pitch entertained, there’s also themed laps every hour, such as wheelbarrow laps, cartwheel laps, onesie laps, etc.! The highlight has to be the 3am silent disco though!!
Our second trip of the year. So, if you can’t make Malinbeg, no worries!
Diving – We will be diving sites like Portacloy and the Stacks of Broadhaven. You can expect to see caves, gullies, a golden sandy bottom, swim-throughs +/- basking sharks and dolphins alongside the boat trip! Our friends from UL SAC will also be joining us this weekend!
Surroundings – Our accommodation is upstairs in Healy’s pub, so thankfully for us lucky group of pint-hungry divers, the bar never closes!! The nearest ATM is on the way in the town of Bangor Erris (circa 25 mins by car).
Fun Fact! History was made in Belmullet when Davy Lynn drank a YOP at 20m. It wasn’t an easy task, but as is prevalent in all legends, Davy overcame every obstacle (like breathing) and lives to tell the tale! Oh and also…. UCD SAC Divers encountered Basking Sharks our last time diving here!! We made national news!!!
Diving – As declared by Jacques Cousteau, Kilkee is the best place in Europe for diving, and one of the top five in the world. Dive sites can be found that go from 10m to 45m! Among the many fabulous dive sites around, Kilkee has a few hidden treasures, like the phenomenal Blue Pool and its infamous ‘Letter Box’!
Other clubs like UL SAC, Kilkee SAC and possibly NUIG SAC also tend to join us for a dive or two!
Surroundings – Our Kilkee accommodation is the lovely Trident Holiday Homes, which is self-catering. The nearest pubs (and local nightclub) are about a 5 min wobbly walk away, and the nearest ATM is in Kilkee town.
Diving – Blaskets people…. BLASKETS!!!!
We don’t really know what else to say? Apparently the last Blaskets weekend is down in the history books as being some of the best diving that has ever happened in the club!
In saying that, the boat trip from Dingle to the Blaskets is very long and very weather dependent, so not to worry, we have contingent dive sites just in case! The entire Dingle peninsula is dotted with incredible dive sites like The Crow Rock, Brandon Creek, Smerwick Harbour etc.
Surroundings – We are staying at the Rainbow Hostel which is self-catering as usual, and is literally right around the corner from the main strip of pubs in Dingle! The main slip in Dingle tends to be a bit busy so we have a few quieter ones in mind just in case, most of which are only 5 min drives from the hostel!
Some fellow divers from UL SAC will more than likely be sharing our very large hostel with us, and possibly some may join from UCC SAC also.
There are ATMs and even Card Machines in Dingle pubs!! Fancy!
Our annual super-long getaway! This trip is two weeks of mad craic and diving on Boffin Island. The trip is open to all, but especially to our esteemed veterans! Feel free to come and go—as long as you tell the man with the plan, Pat Neville our Boat Officer.
Diving – We will be diving around the whole island (it is, in the words of our crustie expert divers, “paradise”). The sites range from trainee sites to advanced deep diving. There’s also cave diving, drift diving, wreck diving, shore diving, just lots of diving! The depth ranges from 5m to +45m. The profile of the seafloor is diverse in pretty much everything.
As for other divers, there’ll be yer local cowboys.
Civilisation – We will be staying at Inishbofin Hostel +/- rented houses. There are 3 pubs on the island, the handiest for day drinking being Day’s Café which is at the top of the slip!
The nearest ATM is in Clifden so bring lots of cash! (i.e. mainland, circa 2 hours).
Diving – Weather and tide dependent, we will be launching from Portronan Pier (stone’s throw from the hostel) or Bunagee Pier.
The maximum depth is 40m. The west and southwest are abundant with sites to see!
The topography is made up of rock walls, caves and reefs, decorated by wrecks
Fun Facts:
- MV WILLIAM MANNELL – First World War converted minesweeper sunk when she hit a mine. Lying in 30 metres of water in Culdaff Bay, Co. Donegal.
- RMS LAURENTIC – 15,000 ton White Star liner mined during the First World War carrying a cargo of gold to Canada; all but 2% was recovered. Lying in 40 metres of water 2 miles north of Lough Swilly.
- INISHTRAHULL ISLAND – Various wreck and reef dives around this island, strong tides and exposed seas requires experience and well-equipped divers.
Surroundings – We will be staying at Sandrock Holiday Hostel, right by the bay. The nearest pubs are Crossroads Inn and Farran’s Bar, a 20 min walk. The nearest ATM is in Malin Village (circa 15min drive).
Our chill-out Halloween weekend! (Mostly craic with diving on the side).
Diving – We still dive, but not every adventurously! Usually by the time this weekend rocks around we’re all too dived out from the year to make any effort getting those heavy tanks on our backs… Sooo instead we cozy up beside the fire in the pub, and we know there’s reliable diving out there in the lough of we want it! That diving would be two wrecks (inner and outer lees). The seafloor profile is something you don’t aim to see because it’s more of a quicky in and out job!! The maximum depth is 25m.
Surroundings – We always always stay at Barholm Hostel. Sure we may as well own the place by now! The nearest pub is a 1 minute walk around the corner, and the nearest ATM is in Strangford Town (also less than 5 mins up around the corner!) .
(More info as the date gets closer…. Because sometimes we get the notion to be sociable and join every other college club from around the country at Intervarsities which is also held this weekend! IVs are mighty craic! But Strangford is a kind of tradition! It’s always a hard one to decide!!)
Calm
Vs.
Chaos
