CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia CommonsDive· Salt Island· Virgin Islands (BVI, USVI and Spanish Virgins)
RMS Rhone Wreck
18° 22.1′ N · 64° 32.1′ W
The Royal Mail steamer Rhone, smashed onto Black Rock Point by the hurricane of October 29, 1867, lies in two sections off Salt Island: the Caribbean's most famous wreck dive, with a propeller in snorkel depth and a bow at about 80 ft.
Practical
Position from Wikipedia (OpenStreetMap's wreck node is at 18.36891, -64.53456). The 310 ft iron steamer was anchored at Peter Island's Great Harbour when the hurricane hit and was driven onto Black Rock Point trying to reach open sea; Wikipedia gives 123 killed. The wreck was used in the 1977 film The Deep and became a national park in 1980. Bow section about 80 to 82 ft (forward mast, davits, intact interior; 30-minute bottom time on a typical dive); stern section 15 to 65 ft (engine, drive shaft with an encrusted spoon, the 'lucky porthole', rudder and bronze propeller at about 15 ft, snorkellable in clear water). Two dives needed. Operators treat it as an advanced dive because of depth, current and surface conditions and require a dive within the past 3 years (Blue Water Divers). Inside the Rhone Marine Park: moor only on NPT buoys in Lee Bay (see that entry), no anchoring, no fishing, and spearguns were historically banned for non-nationals.
Best for
The BVI's signature wreck dive, and a snorkel over the stern
Nearby
- Rhone Reef & Rhone stern snorkel (Lee Bay)0.1 NM away
- BVI National Parks Trust Marine Conservation Permit0.2 NM away
- RMS Rhone Marine Park Day Moorings (Lee Bay)0.2 NM away
- Salt Island Bay Beach0.3 NM away
- Salt Island Bay Moorings0.4 NM away
- Salt Island Salt Ponds & Settlement0.4 NM away
- Rhone Graves (Salt Island)0.6 NM away
- Blonde Rock1 NM away