Moray Firth and North
HMY VERONA, MORAY FIRTH
45m
Built in 1890 in Glasgow as an opulent steam yacht, she had ten owners before entering Service as an Auxiliary Patrol Yacht in November 1914. She patrolled the Moray Firth until February 1917 when she struck a mine, broke in two and sank in 45 metres.
She patrolled as an Auxiliary Patrol Yacht in the Peterhead area during 1914 and 1915 before moving to Cromarty in the Moray Firth in 1916. On the 24 Feb 1917 while on patrol she hit a mine, broke in two, and sank in 45 metres with the loss of four officers and nineteen men.
She sits in 42-45M of water and the first thing you will notice when descending the shot is her hugh boiler in the middle of the wreck. The wreck sits at an angle and moving along the stern section you must stop and look at the ships toilet bowls! They have beautiful decorations on the inside of the bowl. Continuing along the stern you will come across one of the ship guns, which must have been fitted by the Navy. It is quite strange to see the remains of a once beautiful yacht with the signs of war scattered around the same area. There used to be a very impressive bow but this has now broken off. The Verona normally has very good viz and can be a photographers dream.
The visibility on this wreck can be quite stunning. I have begun a descent and at 8m been amazed to see the whole wreck visible some 30m below me; quite an awesome sight. The wreck is now quite broken with the bow section having fallen away to the starboard side late in 2002. Around the bow the ornate toilet and wash basin can still be seen in remarkably good condition. Moving toward the stern, the ship's wheel can be seen on the seabed just off the port side. The huge central bolier is often the first feature you see as the shot line is invariably attached to it. The propeller and rudder are still in place but can be quite difficult to see beneath the stern section.
SS San Tiburcio, Moray Firth
20-35m
The Jewel of The Moray Firth in my opinion is the 'San Tiburcio'. She is a tanker of the Eagle Shipping Company and was lost after hitting a mine in 1940.
The British steam tanker San Tiburcio was a 5995 ton vessel of overall dimensions 413ft x 53ft x 31 ft that sank in the Moray Firth due to the explosive effect of a mine during the early stages of World War 2. The ship had been converted to fit a stern mounted 3-inch gun for its war service. This gun was fitted for defensive purposes to Merchant shipping on charter to the Admiralty during both World Wars.
On the fateful day it was on His Majesty's Service from Scapa Flow to Invergordon when it struck a mine in the Moray Firth. After hitting the mine she broke in two. The cargo comprised fuel oil and Sunderland aeroplane floats destined for the seaplane base in the Cromarty Firth.
The wreck is in two distinct sections. The bow sits upright and its deck is at 30M and it is 40M to the sea bed where you can see the Port side anchor hanging and swaying in the current. The bow section is easily navigatable as there is a 'flying bridge' running the full length. Once you have descended onto the bow you can easily swim across numerous hatches which allow a view into the huge holds. Do not enter these as they are massive and a diver can become easily lost.
There is a swim through at the back of the bow section where the remains of the accomodation can be found. This will bring you to an obvious break in the wreck at about 35M. You can follow a permenant line, which attaches the bow to the stern section. The stern section lies at an angle in about 35M and the vis on the stern is normally not as good as the bow section, it is also a lot more broken up.. Both the stern and bow sections are normally buoyed and the ships bell has never been found
The Jewel of
TRAWLER UNITY,LOSSIEMOUTH, MORAY FIRTH.
57-45.311N 003-13.365W(GPS)
DEPTH LW 24m HW 28m
An easy wreck dive on a fairly large trawler. If launching from Lossiemouth Harbour slipway the key to the barrier may be obtained from the harbour master. Don't be tempted if it's unlocked to launch and return without first seeing him as it may be locked on your return. Alternatively launching on the public slip on the east beach is an option. See Air, Slips and Dive Shops.
The Unity was an 83ft Peterhead registered trawler that was being decommissioned. Whilst being stripped in Lossiemouth harbour it sprang a leak and it was decided to try and tow it to the scrap yard before it settled in the harbour basin. However all attempts to keep her afloat were unsuccessful and she sank under tow in approximately 24 metres of water. The wreck sits on a sandy otherwise barren seabed with a list to port, the portside deck being almost level with the seabed. The superstructure was crudely removed during stripping to enable removal of her engine so only one third of this remains and a large opening into the empty engine room makes it a relatively safe wreck to explore. Also easy access is found under the forward shelter deck and into the fish holds. Although an easy wreck dive it is strongly recommended that common sense is used when exploring the holds.
The large brass four bladed propeller still remains but is slowly settling into the soft seabed.
HMS TANTIVY, MORAY FIRTH
Visibility is variable, either very good or very bad, and is normally very dark, latest update is that the nets are now off the wreck, when we last dived her one of our party got caught up in the net! not good at 40+ metres
There can't be many places around the country where you can dive on a tank. There are 5 Valentine tanks in the area, however, to date only two have been located. There is one near Burghead harbour in around 12 metres, and another north of
known as DD Tanks, which stands for Duplex Drive, they were the forerunners of the Sherman Tanks which swam ashore on D-Day, as they are now on the seabed they were obviously having 'teething problems'. There are reported to be several in Loch Fyne but in very deep water. The tanks had propellors fitted at the rear, and they were made watertight then a large collapsible screen fitted around the hull to give buoyancy, they then swam ashore from landing crafts, and once on the beach the screen was dropped and they went into action.
SS MORAY
MORAY FIRTH
30m