NATURE enthusiasts are being urged to “go wet and wild” at the county’s best sites for snorkelling. 

With warmer weather approaching, a list of snorkelling hot spots has been compiled by the marine and freshwater team of the community group Planet Purbeck. 

The team is hoping encourage both residents and tourists to discover the “amazing beauty” that lies beneath the surface of the sea. 

Their list also gives an insight into the “breathtaking” creatures and plant life that may be found by those who take the plunge. 

Planet Purbeck’s Doug Skinner said: “Much of the attention about wildlife, conservation and ecology tends to be concentrated on the land, which sometimes means our coastlines and seas get a little lost and left behind, as it were. 

“We want to engage people with the sea and the amazing things that are going on in it. 

“Despite all the problems connected with the sea, such as pollution and over-fishing, there is still a huge amount of beauty there to be enjoyed.” 

Planet Purbeck’s Go-Wet-And-Wild guide for this spring and summer includes in Man O’War Cove, North Beach in Swanage, Kimmeridge Bay, Worbarrow Bay, Redend Point in Studland Bay, Boscombe, Stair Hole, west of Lulworth Cove, Seacombe, Dancing Ledge, Ringstead, Frenchman’s Ledge in Osmington and Church Ope Cove on Portland. 

Planet Purbeck stresses that individuals keen to have a go must make their own assessments of conditions at each site and be responsible for their own swimming skills. 

Mr Skinner, who will be among the speakers at a Rewilding Our Seas event during Planet Purbeck’s 2024 festival in September, said: “As in all aspects of life, safety is paramount.”