Today I had the chance to dive the HMNZS Canterbury (F421) which was one of two Leander-class frigates. It was operated by the Royal New Zealand Navy from 1971 to 2005, when she was purposely scuttled in the Bay of Islands as a dive wreck. She was built in Scotland in 1970 and saw operational service throughout Australasia and the Persian Gulf.
Swimming under the boat
She is in about 38 meters of water at the deepest point, making it a very diveable wreck. The water is also usually quite calm, which makes for great visibility.
I was a little bit nervous since 113 meters of navy boat is a lot different than the 12 meter powerboat that was my first wreck dive. I was fortunate enough to get two dives on this wreck with the awesome instructor Katie, who did a great job making me feel comfortable and safe. The first dive we swam through the helicopter hanger, around the boat, and then through a corridor and up into the observation deck. It was really cool and I loved the dive! There were dozens of fish and some really beautiful anemone.
The captain's chair
For the second dive, we started by dropping down the back of the boat and then swimming under the rudders and up the side. I then swam into the wreck and swam nearly the entire 113 meter length inside the ship! It was quite eerie, actually. A lot of it was quite dark, so peering into the engine room the fish were silhouetted against the light from a door further down the corridor. The thing that seemed the strangest were the toilets. Everything else looked like a wreck with kelp and sea life growing on it. The toilets looked completely normal though and it seemed so strange to see fish just swimming around them since that is something everyone can relate to and everyone uses every day.
We swam out past the captain's chair and out the front of the boat. From there we swam up and gradually shallower until it was time to end the dive. It was one of the most incredible experiences and makes me very excited to eventually get my wreck specialty. I would definitely recommend Dive North and the Canterbury to any diver! It was incredible!
No comments:
Post a Comment