Scuba Diving Bryn Hall, near Bethesda is a recipe for disaster and is known as North Wales death trap. Despite the dangers, this quarry is thought to be continually dove even though it has been fenced off several times to keep people out. This Quarry is fifty-Five Meters deep, contains a large amount of barbed wire, unexploded bombs, discarded junk, and the body of a diver which was never recovered. Even though the Visibility is said to be good year round it is also also said that a slight touch to the silt covered objects or bottom can make the visibility become extremely poor, to possibly even zero.
One diver who claims to have dove Bryn Hall wrote the following on an Internet bulletin board:
"Be very very careful in Bryn, you won't just need a knife to cut your way out, if you get tangled, you will need wire cutters. "The place is deep, dark, full of rubbish, barbed wire all over the place, dead sheep, cars and unexploded bombs and not forgetting the poor soul that is still in there. Visibility is brilliant down to 30m, lots of quarry workings, don't touch anything as it kicks up clouds of silt, down towards the 50m mark the water turns into a black soup with zero vis."
Another diver wrote: "Bryn Hall is bitterly cold all year round and the slate itself is razor sharp and will cut without warning so be extra careful."
Andrew James Marshall died on October 5, 1970 while he was diving with a group of friends in the Bryn Hall quarry. Friends say that during the dive he was seen sitting on a crane under the water. When his buddies turned around he was nowhere to be seen. One diver noticed bubbles, swam down, but saw no sign of the diver.
A spokesman for the Merseyside British Sub Aqua club said the body of Mr. Marshall was never recovered despite considerable efforts. "The bottom was dark, badly silted up and visibility was down to zero," he said. "The search was called off because of the risk to searchers."
You should always know your limitations and stay with in those boundaries. Diving an area that is known for hazards is reckless to say the least, and not only puts your own life at risk but also the rescue party that may have to come after you. Stop and think, is there really anything down there worth dieing for?