Diving Cape Town Wrecks
The Cape waters are littered with thousands of shipwrecks, recent and ancient, on the shore and in deep water. Common wreck dives are the Maori, the Astor, the Katzu Maru, the Smitswinkel Bay wrecks, the Pietermaritzburg, and the Clan Stuart. As with reef dives we are most interested in diving some of the lesser known wrecks and we have even discovered a few over the years. Listed below are a selection of our favourites:
SAS Gelderland
The SAS Gelderland, a navy Ford class seaward defence patrol boat was scuttled in 1988. She was 40m long but is now only about 25m as the navy blew the bow section right off when scuttling her. The stern and mid-ships sections lie intact and upright on the sand at 35m. She is surrounded by huge boulders with some great reef life and a pinnacle which rises to 12m is fairly close by. Unfortunately the superstructure and her funnels are gone and most of the hull has filled with sand. Keen wreck divers will find plenty to keep them busy as she has not been dived since her sinking. She was found by Pisces Divers in November 2004 after a few dives spent looking for her and is now one of our favourite Atlantic deep dives.
Ark Rock Barge
A small wreck that is ideal as an introduction to wreck diving. There is the option of penetrating the side compartments very safely or one can just enter the main hold, which is open upwards. Max depth is 11m. It is very pretty and can be done in only 15 minutes.
Brunswick
This English East-Indiaman ran aground in 1805. She was of wooden construction and all that remains now are sections of her hull timbers and some copper sheeting that used to cover the timber. The wreck if of significant historic importance and the area has been well surveyed by marine archaeologists. Divers interested marine archaeology will find the story of her wrecking and discovery by divers very interesting. Absolutely nothing may be removed from the site. It is an easy shallow dive and there are lots of interesting critters living around the wreck. Depth is 5m to 8m
Glencairn Barge and Reef
The intact wreck of a barge lays 500m off the Glencairn quarry. It was used during the construction of the Simon's Town harbour to transport rock from the Glencairn quarry to Simon's Town. The wreck is shaped like a landing craft and is completely open on top. There are great swim-throughs between the various compartments. The best thing about this wreck is that it is surrounded by very pretty reef with numerous large ferns, small sharks and fish-life.
SAS Good Hope
There are 5 wrecks in Smitswinkel Bay, 2 frigates, 2 trawlers and a diamond-mining vessel. Most of the Cape dive operators go here every weekend and they are somewhat overdived. The Good Hope is the best of the 5 and it has much to offer. There are plenty of penetration possibilities for those accordingly trained and the wreck is covered in marine growth. Max depth is 34m with the main deck at about 28m. Nitrox is highly recommended
SAS Fleur
A naval boom defence vessel sunk in 1965. A dive only for experienced wreck divers. Max depth is 40m so nitrox is recommended. It is in the middle of False Bay 25 minutes from Millers Point. There is the possibility of some light salvage if you know where to look. There are plenty of big reef fish on the wreck and the possibility of encountering Great White Sharks.
Lusitania
A Portuguese passenger liner of 5557 tons wrecked on Bellows Rock off Cape Point in 1911. She later slipped off the rock into deep water next to the rock where she still rests today. This is certainly the most adventurous and thrilling of all the Cape's dives. Conditions need to be near perfect to do this dive as any swell causes massive crashing waves over Bellows Rock. The wreck lies between 32m and 40m but it is so close to the rock that the decent and ascent need to be done at an angle to avoid the swirling white water around the rock. Only divers that have demonstrated a high level of competence, regardless of dive qualifications, are allowed to accompany us on a Lusi expedition. Nitrox is a definite requirement.