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Shipwrecks
Bermuda’s treacherous barrier reef has proved the undoing of hundreds of ships over the last four centuries. Some lie in water as shallow as 12 feet, and many lie in waters ranging from 15 to 70 feet deep.
Our morning two-tank dive (for certified divers only) will consist of a wreck dive and a reef dive, while the single tank dive in the afternoon will be either a wreck or a reef.
Wrecks include luxury liners, gunships, steamers, freighters, frigates, passenger steamships, cargo ships, fishing and sailing sloops, brigantines, and even a few paddlewheel steamers. The wrecks carried a variety of national flags, including the United States, Canada, Spain, Norway, France, Greece, Portugal, Italy – and Bermuda.
The most significant wreck in Bermuda’s history is that of the English flagship Sea Venture, which went down in shallow waters just off what is now the Town of St. George, on July 28, 1609. All 150 passengers and crew survived the wreck, and became Bermuda’s first settlers.
Whichever wrecks you dive, you should take nothing but photographs. The Historic Wrecks Act 2001 is designed to preserve and protect Bermuda’s submerged cultural heritage. It prohibits anyone from marking, removing, interfering with, dealing in, or possessing, any wreck or historical artifact unless authorised and licensed to do so.
Please contact us with any questions you have.
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Wrecks We Dive Frequently
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Other Wrecks
Caraquet
A British mail packet and passenger steamer launched in 1894, she wrecked on the Northern Barrier Reef in 1923 while en route from St. John, British Virgin Islands, to Halifax, England. All passengers, crew and mail were landed safely. She lies 30' down.
Cristobal Colon
A 500' Spanish luxury liner launched in 1923, she wrecked in 1936 – and is the largest of the wrecks lying in Bermuda’s waters. With her wreckage scattering across an area encompassing 100,000 square feet she offers hours of fascinating exploration in waters 30' to 55' deep.
Photo courtesy Bermuda BluesIristo (Aristo)
A 250' Norwegian freighter built in 1918, she wrecked in 1937 while attempting to avoid the wreck of the Cristobal Colon. She lies 50' down with her bow 18' from the surface. Christened the Iristo, she is sometimes known as the Aristo, likely because the New York Times misspelled her name in its report of her sinking.
The Kate
A 200-foot English Brigantine Rig with an iron propeller sank in December 1878 en route from Galveston, Taxes to Le Havre, France. This iron steamer struck a reef 22 miles north-west of Gibbs Hill Lighthouse. All the crew was saved, as was her cargo of 3,500 bales of cotton. The Captain was found at fault and had his licence revoked. Today The Kate sits on a reef off Tucker's Town Beach in 45 feet of water, with her boilers, engine, propeller shaft and deck winches still visible. Snorkelers can also find her propeller sitting alone on top of the reef in 20 feet of water.
Photo courtesy Ron Lucas Photography
Madiana
A Canadian passenger/light cargo ship built in 1877, she was en route to the West Indies in 1903 carrying passengers and cargo when she struck a reef and sank. She sits 25' down, one mile from the Caraquet.
Pelinaion
A 385' Greek cargo steamer built in 1907, she is the best wreck off the Island's East End. She was heading from West Africa to Baltimore, Maryland, when she struck a reef off St. David’s Head in 1940. Lying one mile offshore in waters 20'-70' deep, she is a massive and awesome sight.
Photo courtesy Joe Dovala Photography
Rita Zovetta
The Rita Zovetta sank in 1924 and lies in waters 20-70 feet off St. David's Island at the north-eastern end of Bermuda. The 5,107-ton steamship was christened the War Gascon when it was launched by a Scottish company in 1919. The 360-feet-long vessel was sold two years later to Parodi and Accame of Genoa, Italy. While bound from Poti, Georgia on the Black Sea to Baltimore, Maryland, USA, the Rita Zovetta ran aground off St. David's Lighthouse. Strong winds brought heavy seas, however, most of the manganese ore cargo was off-loaded before the ship sank. No lives were lost. The stern section is still intact and divers can swim through the shaft housings and view the huge boilers and condensers. The propeller is still visible, wedged into the reef.
Taunton
A 228' Danish cargo steamer built in 1902, she sank after hitting the reef in 1920. She is a favourite shallow water dive, as her bow comes within 10' of the surface, and she is quite a photogenic wreck.
Photo courtesy Bermuda Blues Blanch King
An American schooner built in 1887, she was en route from Norfolk, Virginia, with a load of coal when she became stranded on the reefs and sank on December 2, 1920. Her cable and rigging are scattered across the reefs. She lies near the North Carolina, which went down in 1880.
Constellation
An American schooner built in 1918, she was carrying building materials, medicinal drugs including morphine and 700 cases of Scotch whiskey to Venezuela when she went down in 1943. The wreck was the basis for the adventure novel The Deep by author Peter Benchley, a frequent visitor to Bermuda, as well as the film of the same name starring Jacqueline Bisset, Nick Nolte and Robert Shaw. She lies in 30’ of water, near another wreck, the Montana.
Darlington
A British steamer built in 1881, she was on a voyage from New Orleans to Germany when she went down in 1886. She lies 20' feet below the surface, within swimming distance of an unidentified Spanish galleon.
Hermes
A 165' American steel buoy tender built during World War II, the Hermes is a popular wreck dive. In 1985, she became an artificial reef and rests 80' down, fully intact, with her mast pointing towards the surface.
Photo courtesy Ron Lucas Photography
Lartington
An early British steam freighter launched in 1875, she was en route from Georgia, U.S., to Russia in 1879 when she ran into stormy weather. She was already floundering badly when she hit a reef and sank. She lies in 15'-35' of water.
L´Herminie
A first-class, 60-gun French frigate launched in 1824, she was returning to France after a skirmish in Mexico in 1838 when she crashed into a reef. She lies in 20'-30' of water with 25 cannons still visible.
Mari Celeste
A 207-ton British paddlewheel steamer charted to Confederate forces for blockade running during the American Civil War, she sank in 1864. She lies in 55' of water with one of her paddlewheel frames standing upright.
Photo courtesy Ron Lucas Photography
Minnie Breslauer
A 300' British steamer launched in 1873, she was on her maiden voyage when she ran aground on Bermuda's reefs. She lies one mile from shore in depths of 35'-70'.
Montana (Nola)
A 236' British paddlewheel steamer used as a blockade runner by Confederate forces during the American Civil War, Bermuda’s coral reefs did what no Union gunboat could do when she sank in 1863. She is now adorned with lovely coral. She had multiple names in an effort to elude the suspicions of Yankee spies.
North Carolina
A 205’ British barque that struck a reef and sank on New Year's Day 1880, she sits upright in depths of 25'-40'. The curves of her fantail stern have a touch of ghostly grace. She lies near the Blanch King, which went down in 1920.
Pollockshields
Built in Germany in 1890, she became a German naval supply vessel in World War I until captured and taken over by the British Government. In 1915, she ran into a “white squall” and can be found scattered in 20'-40' feet of water on a coral bottom. Live ammunition, shell casings, boilers, a propeller, and her engine, can be seen amongst her wreckage.
Photo courtesy Joe Dovala Photography
Xing Da
The target of a U.S. Immigration sting operation, she was captured and towed to Bermuda in 1997. She was sunk in 106' of water, and landed upright in a sand hole. No longer intact, she is still a dive site of some interest and offers the deepest wreck diving in Bermuda.
Photo courtesy Ron Lucas Photography
