Meet The People That Make It Happen Above And Below The Water

Nick Buckley – Master Instructor  & Co-Owner

Originating from the UK, Nick has been in Grand Cayman for around 22 years. His travels and work experience with some of the top underwater free divers, photographers and film makers have allowed him to dive at the kind of places that would feature on most divers’ dive bucket list. With over 18,000 dives to his credit, he has instructed divers from all walks of life. He created Deep Blue Divers 16 years ago as an intimate, exclusive operation for guests seeking the ultimate underwater experience, and took over Lobster Pot Dive Center in 2007. If you ask Nick what’s his favourite dive site, he’ll tell you he doesn’t care, so long as it’s wet!

Giles Charlton-Jones – Open Water Scuba Instructor & Co-Owner

Born in Oxford, England, Giles grew up in England but his mother’s side of the family was Caymanian and he always harboured the desire to spend more time in Cayman. Having travelled the world extensively before and after completing a degree in Business Studies he settled in London to work for Trailfinders, the premiere independant travel operator in the UK. Excellent vacation benefits meant that Giles could pursue his new found love of scuba diving and he worked his way up to his Instructor qualification whilst visiting various far-flung dive destinations. With this objective reached, Giles packed his bags, sold his possessions and made the move to Grand Cayman! Giles has been instructing and guiding dives in Cayman since 1995, giving him a wide range of experience with both large boats and large groups and small boats and small groups.

 Danny Kupkowski – Open Water Scuba Instructor & Co-Owner

Danny owns and operates Sea Elements, is co-owner of Lobster Pot Dive Center and previously ran his own dive boat operation. From Georgia, USA, he has worked in the Cayman water sports industry for over 12 years. The mangrove tours are his passion and he is well known in Cayman for his knowledge of the marine environment and his passion for ocean conservation.

Dawn Clerkson – IDC Staff Instructor

From Kent in South East England, Dawn caught the dive bug while vacationing in Cyprus. She immediately went on to take her Open Water course in the Red Sea, Egypt, then left the corporate lifestyle and the bright lights of London behind for a trip to Australia in 2001 where she worked her way up to Instructor level. She worked for several dive centers and live-aboards on the Great Barrier Reef in northern Queensland before leaving Australia for the Gulf of Thailand where she spent the next year instructing out of Koh Samui. She then spent eight years teaching in the British Virgin Islands before joining Lobster Pot in February 2013. Her most memorable dive experiences are the wreck of the SS Yongala in Australia, the wreck of the President Coolidge in Vanuatu, diving with manatees in Mexico, whale shark encounters in Thailand and the pristine reefs of Malaysia’s Perhentian Islands. Dawn likes to chill out practising yoga and swinging in her hammock after a hard day out in the water.

Damien Massey – Master Scuba Diver Trainer

Born in London England, Damien has lived all over the UK. He learned to dive in the murky waters of Stoney Cove in Leicestershire, where a compass is usually a necessity. After becoming certified, he took a dive trip to Sharm el Sheik, Egypt, where he was lucky enough to dive the SS Thistlegorm, considered to be one of the best wreck dives in the world. He re-located to Grand Cayman in September of 2010 where he soon moved on to Divemaster. He gained his Open Water Scuba Instructor rating shortly thereafter, in 2011. He joined The Lobster Pot just before Christmas 2012 and, as a MSDT, is qualified to teach a whole range of PADI speciality courses. Cheeseburger Reef is one of his favourite spots as it’s accessible and ideal for training student divers and also because you never know who or what you might find on your dive. He is an avid wreck diver and enjoys taking guests on Cayman’s latest wreck, the ex USS Kititwake. He recommends reading Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson if you haven’t already and want to get into wreck diving. His other interests include kite-boarding and sailing lasers at the Cayman Island Sailing Club.

Marsha Clair – Sales Clerk & Rescue Diver

Marsha is from nearby Jamaica but came to Grand Cayman in 2003. Before joining the Lobster Pot team she worked as a tour and snorkel guide on various tour boats around the island. Marsha’s is usually the first face you’ll see as you walk into the dive center. She can help you book your dive course or dive trip, set you up with snorkel equipment to rent for the day if you’re visiting on a cruise ship and sell you a t-shirt, sunglasses or a souvenir from our wide range of gift items. She is currently working on her Divemaster Course and who knows, one day she might step out of the shop to join the dive crew as an Instructor.