Egypt Itineraries:

Best of Wrecks

The aim of 'Best of Wrecks' is to provide a week of heavy metal for divers who love exploring wrecks.

This itinerary follows a North and Brothers route and during the week, divers will experience the excitement of diving famous wrecks of the Red Sea, including the SS Thistlegorm, Carnatic, Ulysses, Ghiannis D and the Dunraven. PLEASE NOTE: The Egyptian Navy currently has a diving restriction on the Rosalie Moller, which can be lifted/reinforced at any time and therefore cannot be guaranteed on this itinerary. (06/02/12)

QUALIFICATION NEEDED: You must have a minimum of 50 logged dives to join this safari and ideally be a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver or equivalent.

Please note that night diving and snorkelling will only be allowed on some parts of this itinerary as it includes marine parks where this is prohibited.

The week will offer the opportunity to:

- Learn about the history of the wrecks.

- Enjoy fantastic diving on some of the most unique Red Sea wrecks.

Why join this itinerary?

Best of Wrecks allows divers who love wrecks to dive just that, so anyone who has an active interest in wreck diving will love this itinerary. However, it is also interesting to bear in mind is that many of these Red Sea wrecks have been underwater for a very long time and have formed what you might call 'artificial reefs', teeming with life. This itinerary would therefore be enjoyed by all divers, not just the wreckies amounst us!

Sample itinerary:

**PLEASE NOTE** the itinerary below is just an example of the route taken and the order and dive sites are not guaranteed. All dives sites are subject to weather conditions and the final route taken is at the absolute discretion of the captain and dive guides.

This sample route is based on the vessel departing from and arriving back to Hurghada however this itinerary can also be run from and to Port Ghalib and so therefore the order of sites can vary.

Day 1 - Shaab El Erg, Abu Nuhas

Day 2 - Abu Nuhas, Ulysses, Gobal Barge

Day 3 - Rosalie Moller*, Thistlegorm,

Day 4 - Thistlegorm, Shag Rock/Kingston, Dunraven - overnight sail

Day 5 - Big Brother Numidia, Big Brother Aida

Day 6 - Salem Express, El Miniya

Itinerary highlights:

SS. Thistlegorm - Shaab Ali: Probably the most famous of the Red Sea wrecks. The 129m English Freighter was bombed by German aviation on 6th October 1941. Today she creates an artificial reef on a sandy bottom at 32m max depth. She is home to an enormous variety of marine life and is especially popular with large schooling fish.

Abu Nuhas: Also known as the 'Ships Graveyard', this reef is dangerously positioned close to the busy shipping lanes of the Gulf of Suez. This reef has claimed more ships than any other in the area. On the north side are four wrecks laying on a sandy seafloor at the bottom of a steep sloping reef layered with table corals. On the south side is a safe anchorage for liveaboards and two ergs, known as Yellow fish reef.

Ghiannus D - Abu Nuhas: In 26m of water and leaning to port with a fully intact stern section and an impressive engine room packed with glass fish.

Carnatic - Abu Nuhas: A British P&O steamer which struck the reef in 1869. She lays in 29m and now the whole hull is draped in multicoloured soft corals. The wreck is home to glass fish, octopus, morays, jacks and tuna cruise overhead.

Tile Wreck - Abu Nuhas: There is much discussion over the true identity of this wreck. Sunk in 1978 fully laden with stone floor tiles, she now lies from 4m to 30m.

Lentil Wreck - Abu Nuhas: A cargo vessel which sank in 1978 whilst carrying a heavy load of lentils. She rests at 30m on her starboard side. The bow area is completely destroyed but the main section and propeller areas are good to explore.

Big Brother: A 400 metre long island offering fabulous wreck diving and wall diving. The wreck of the Numidia lies on the northern tip between 10 and 80 metres. The north-west side of the island houses the wreck of the Aida. Every section of this reef is covered with corals and life.

*Subject to current Egyptian Navy restrictions

Want to go? Check out the Schedules and Prices HERE

Underwater images featured by Dray Van Beeck - www.drayvanbeeck.com