Newfoundland Wrecks, Icebergs and Whales

Canada's easternmost Province, offers a wealth of unusual and exciting dive experiences. Only a four hour flight from the UK you will find fantastic diversity of marine life plus the opportunity to dive on some of the World's best preserved WWII shipwrecks. Imagine diving with majestic whales, next to awe-inspiring icebergs or in some of the historic areas where Europeans moving to the 'New World' settled centuries ago.

Newfoundland diving focuses on the famous Bell Island Shipwrecks; four Allied ore carriers torpedoed by German U-boats in 1942, sunk at their moorings in Lance Cove. Each over 100 metres long, upright and intact, they have been highly rated by prominent divers with regard to preservation, easy access and visibility and are rapidly finding their way to the top of many divers 'must do' list. Ranging in depth from 15 to 49 metres the wrecks of the SS Saganaga, SS Lord Strathcona, SS Rose Castle and the PLM27, offer something for all levels of experience and are fast becoming one of Newfoundland's main tourist attractions in their own right.

It's not only the man-made giants that draw visitors to Newfoundland. The natural world's own wonders, icebergs and whales, provide plenty of breathtaking encounters for divers. Springtime is when the icebergs from Greenland reach their journey's end in Conception Bay and offer a unique, exciting experience to divers who want something a little different. Whilst summer sees the arrival of vast shoals of Caplin fish, a.k.a. whale food, which attract many whale species, including enormous Humpbacks, friendly Belugas and the occasional Narwhal. Some can be extremely inquisitive and will often spend long periods interacting with divers in shallow water - a truly amazing encounter.

The area's varied marine life provides the underwater photographer with subjects that easily match those of many popular warm water destinations. Apart from the wrecks, which are bristling with invertebrates and curious, brightly coloured Lump Fish, there are numerous shallow shore sites which offer meetings with Wolf Fish, lobsters, nudibranchs and all kinds of critters.

Wherever you step into Newfoundland's waters you will find something of natural or historical interest; some sites offering both - the Whalebones at Dildo in Trinity Bay for example. Here, close to the shore, at the disused whaling station, lie the bones of many a victim of this now outlawed trade; where divers can cruise an eerie graveyard, populated with huge skulls, jawbones and vertebrae - a grim memorial to these once majestic creatures. Ironically, a similar monument to their former hunters exists in Conception Harbour, where the hulks of three whaler ships lie in only eight metres of water right by the shore, the bow of one reaching above the surface like a tombstone for the old huntsmen lying below. A harpoon gun on the bow of one wreck reminds divers that these rusty old remains were once the efficient killers of a bygone industry.

In addition to visiting the wrecks all year round, the Province's cold winters offer divers the availability of icediving in frozen lakes and sea, observing Atlantic marine life below the icy crust. Although diving is carried out year-round, the core season is between May and October, when water temperature range from as low as 0'C up to 17'C and visibility is excellent, most local divers consider anything less than fifteen metres a bad day.

Diving is with Ocean Quest Adventures, a 5-Star PADI Dive Centre, North America's only BSAC Resort Centre and a TDI/SDI training facility. Accommodation in Newfoundland is at Ocean Quest's purpose built luxurious dive lodge, where each room is en-suite and equipped with television, phone and high speed internet. The suites consist of two single beds or one king size bed and one even has a Jacuzzi. The lower level suites have their own entrance, living room and kitchen. Other facilities available include a sauna, heated indoor swimming pool, large deck and barbecue. In the communal areas there is a kitchen and also a lounge with full multi-media systems which includes a LCD projector, computer and surround sound, plus of course the dive centre and shop for all your training and servicing needs.

Apart from shore diving, Ocean Quest requires all divers to have a PADI AOW/BSAC Sport Diver certification or equivalent, unless under instruction.