Divers dredge disposable vapes from Windermere

Those were the words of Angus Hosking, a member of Lake District Diving who went with a group to the Millerground shoreline of Windermere, which is a popular swimming spot for both locals and tourists. 

Some of the sunglasses that had been dropped into Windermere (Image: Lake District Diving)

Angus went with two other divers because they had not cleaned out Millerground for a while. While the shoreline itself looked clean, as soon as the divers went into the shallow water they found heaps of rubbish below the surface. They then spent three and a half hours 'constantly' pulling out junk. 

Angus said he was 'blown away' by the amount of rubbish found (Image: Lake District Diving)

This included a mix of old and new glass bottles. Glass from one hundred years ago shared the spot with modern bottles and cans of beer. Angus said that there were many 'sharp, sharp' objects submerged in areas that were highly likely to cause injury to swimmers on busy days. 

Other items found by the divers included a wedding ring, a hard drive left in a plastic bag, a dry suit filled with rocks, many disposable vapes and a full bottle of motor oil. 

Disposable vapes found in Windermere (Image: Lake District Diving)

There were also items associated with common watersports activities in the lake, such as equipment for paddleboarding. 

Angus said: "There is a ban coming in on disposable vapes and this just backs that completely." 

The divers even found a hard drive wrapped in a plastic bag (Image: Lake District Diving)

The diver questioned why people do not bring their rubbish home: "People bring a full bag of food and bottles, and it's already heavy when it's full, but then you can't be bothered to bring it back when it's lighter. Why would you not remove the things that you have brought there?

Many drinks cans were found, and the divers even found a full bottle of motor oil (Image: Lake District Diving)

"We are not blaming locals, we are not blaming tourists, we are blaming everyone that goes there. If you drop something, even by accident, it's gone regardless of your intentions. Maybe there should be more awareness of how easily things can be lost." 

He said that Victorian visitors to the lake also dumped their rubbish in the water, so he could not understand why this continues to happen now. 

Some of the glass bottles were over a hundred years old (Image: Lake District Diving)

Angus has previously been in the news for recovering wedding rings from Windermere. 

Lake District Diving is a group of free divers that find lost items in Windermere and campaign on the issue of littering in the lake. They are funded through donations.