Colourful Marine life and other scuba diving delights in BC

British Columbia (BC) is becoming a popular destination for scuba diving holidays after readers of Scuba Diving Magazine voted it the Number 1 Diving Site in North America in 2010.

The waters off the British Columbia coast are home to an array of spectacular marine species such as the giant Pacific octopus, large sea stars and forests of giant sponges. Beneath the surface, there are plenty of opportunities for underwater photography with waters full of colourful anemones, sea cucumbers and coral.

One local inhabitant of these waters is the wolf eel and despite their bugling eyes and less than attractive features, they are some of the friendliest underwater creatures and are often referred to as the "puppies" of the sea.

Paul Kennell, 47-year-old creator of CoolDives.com, a website dedicated to scuba diving adventures off the B.C. coast, said: "They look mean, they look ugly but, just as long as you're careful, you can actually go and touch them, they will snuggle with you. They're funny looking things but they're pretty gentle, generally."

Kennell, from White Rock, British Columbia, has explored oceans around the world during scuba diving holidays over the last 15 years but says his home waters are amongst the best for diving

"The tropics are warmer", explained Kennell, "but the diving is also nowhere near as exciting. There isn't a square inch of rock that you can touch that doesn't have colour on it."

Port Hardy on northern Vancouver Island, is ranked at the top by many divers for waters with lush and diverse ecology. The Browning Wall is one of the most popular diving sites and is teeming with colourful, cold-water marine life.

Mark Leichnitz, from Vancouver Scuba Diving School, explained: "It's just the most spectacular dive site that I've seen anywhere in the world. There is more colour and life there than I've seen anywhere."

Popular sites for scuba diving holidays include the Pacific Undersea Gardens in Victoria; the waters off Nanaimo which are full of historic sunken ships and aircraft; Saanich Inlet, home to the giant sponge; and Race Rocks Ecological Reserve where divers share the waters with curious sea lions and harbour seals.