Why not bring refreshments & nibbles
October
Sunday 20th Rampion Windfarm Trip @ 10am – Whole Boat Available
Choose a day from our List of Dates then Contact Us to get booked in for your trip.
There are two British minesweepers, HMS Britomart and HMS Hussar, both sunk on the same day whilst minesweeping off Cap D’antifer, mistaken for the enemy by British rocket firing Typhoon planes, they were sent to the bottom and now lie at a depth of 33metres.
HMS Britomart is completely upside down, and has both propellers in place. The hull is riddled with holes all the way along the length of her on both sides, this allows easy access for some good penetration,
The other minesweeper, HMS Hussar is more of a twisted wreck, with her stern blown off, she twists her way forward to her bows, which is again upside down. There are very large holes to look inside & explore.
HMS Eden, laying in 34mtrs, is a British WW1 Destroyer,
she was sunk in collision on 16th June 1916. She is broken in 2 with the Bow section missing, having being salvaged shortly after the collision. The wreck is quite open and has easy access for penetration into the engine Room, there is an abundance of life on the wreck with large free swimming congers, shoals of fish which include very large bass.
The merchantman Ikaria, was en-route to the battle of the Somme, when she struck a mine and sank 4 miles offshore, she stands some 15mtrs high in a depth of 27mtrs and is 460ft long. This wreck is huge, it has large open areas of superstructure to explore, the bows are broken off and point to the sky. The superstructure is intact along the length of the wreck, with large access areas to explore. The marine life is amazing. The ship was carrying Horses and munitions and today you can clearly see the boned remains of the animals, which are scatter around the holds and Bows area.
Close to the Ikaria is the wreck of the large Belgium merchantman Piriapolis, She was sunk on the same day as the Albertville, 11th June 1940 also by German aircraft. At the time of her sinking she was being used for the evacuation of British forces from France.
The Granville was sunk on the 13th June 1940, she was hit by Germen shore batteries close to the town of St Vallery en Coe. The ship was hit and burst into flames, the crew abandoned ship and the Granville drifted until she eventually sank.
There are 2 of these German patrol boats close to Fe’Camp, AF13 located in just 20mtrs of water, one is upside down and very broken, the other is on its side, her armaments buried in the sand and depth charges scattered around. They make very interesting second dives.
All the way along the Normandie coast there are plenty of wrecks loaded with ammunition, and fe’Camp has its fair share of them as well. From armed Merchantman and coastal patrol boats to fully laden barges carrying anything from belts of 303 bullets to anti-aircraft rounds, land mines and lumps of phosphorous, Under no circumstances are these munitions to be brought to the surface.
The Malachite, this large merchantman was sunk on 23rd November 1914 by U18.
Today she sits on an even keel with all her sides ripped away and leaving a seabed of flat plates
and ribs and exposing her huge boilers which sit neatly in the middle of the wreckage. Large
conger eels have made this wreck their home and by the look and size of some of them I’d say
they have been there a very long time. This wreck sits in only 30mtrs of water so you can get a good long bottom time on her.
The SS Albertville is the sister ship to the other great Belgian liner the Leopoldville. She was
bombed and sunk by German aircraft on the 11th June 1940 and is lying in only 20mtrs of water.
The wreck has been largely dispersed but still has sections of hull and superstructure
still recognizable. Positive I.D. has been made by the recovery of the ships Bell. The wreck is
spread over a large area and makes for a good rummage.
The Rye, the first thing to grab you about this wreck is the amount of congers living in it and they are not shy either, some will even swim along with you. A first World War wreck sunk on the 7th April 1918 en route to Le Havre along with the merchantman Unity. They were attacked by the German submarine UB74, under the command of Oberleutnant Ernst Steindorff, he struck under the cover of darkness at 03.15am. Although all the ships crew managed to escape to the life rafts, 4 were washed out, off which 3 drowned and 1 was rescued but died of exposure. Today she rests in 38mtrs of water with her bow and stern being the highest points, Her mid section has folded over onto her starboard side with lots of holes to look inside. Bottles & jars lay strewn inside the wreckage.
The German patrol boat UJ1433 was sunk on the 28th August 1944. She sits almost upright with a list to starboard, and is virtually intact, although it has been noticed of late that she is beginning to loose some plating. Its amazing to think that this wreck is less than a mile offshore and is only in 21mtrs of water and makes for an amazing dive. There is loads to see and do, penetrate into the galley where the pots and pans are still on the shelves or into a hold which is full of wine & beer bottles. Large sea Bass swim through the wreck looking for their escape as the divers explore into her depths.
The British submarine D3, sunk by mistake, bombed from the air by a French airship on 12th March 1918. This WW1 sub was quite unique. Today the wreck of the submarine lies a long way offshore, she sits upright and is totally intact. There is signs of damage at the base of the coning tower, but apart from that she is whole.
The Ruth/Pomelin, Originally called “Ruth” this ship was renamed “Pomelin” when sold to the French. She sits upright and almost completely intact, apart from some damage to her stern. For a wreck so far offshore, she is only 38mtrs to the seabed & stands 6mtrs high. She was discovered and first dived back in 2005, a fishermans snagging that turned up trumps. Swim along the decks or drop into the hold with cargo of cement and come out the opening up next to the winch gear, there is some debris on the seabed but most points of interest are on the wreck. The wheel house and accommodation area was at the stern & although collapsed down it is a good rummage area, you can access the engine room from here, but beware there are some huge congers living around the boiler.
The SS Dulwich, sunk on the 15th February 1915, this collier was en route from Hull to Rouen when she was torpedoed by the German submarine U16, the torpedo struck number three hold and the explosion took this ship to the bottom in minutes. All the crew took to the lifeboats and were later picked up by a French patrol boat who took them to Le Havre. The wreck today rests in 38mtrs and is quite broken yet still recognizable. The marine life on her is as all the wrecks on the French side of the channel, amazing.
The Seapark, Found and identified in 2006 this is the wreck of another small coaster, again upright and intact. She sits 38mtrs to the seabed, We don’t know how she sunk or how she came to be in this position but it’s a good dive. One of the few wrecks on the French coast that we have seen masses of Pollock swimming around.
The Jerseyman, A Mid-Channel wreck 48mtrs to the seabed, upright but quite broken, lots of life on this one, and as we hadn’t dived this one before, turned out to be really interesting.
The wreck of the steamship Express, this ship lays in 30mtrs on her portside. Large holes give access to the ships engine and boiler, the superstructure and wheelhouse has collapsed down to the seabed and is a good rummage. On the last visit the ships helm was exposed and stood up proud on the shingle. The wreck is only about 150ft long so it doesn’t take long to have a good look around. Large congers jostle for position around the big boiler and their not scarred of divers.
SS Pylades – SS Pylades was known as the conger & bass wreck, she sits upright and is very intact. She is quite a size and stands 8mtrs high in 34mtrs of water.
The Steamer, This is an old wreck, very broken and scattered around, she has 2 big boilers, which are well exposed, props are still in place. Sitting in only 28mtrs of water, makes good for a second dive.
AF13 – German Coastal Patrol Boat There are 2 of these German patrol boats that have been sunk between Dieppe and Fe’Camp,
AF13 located in just 20mtrs of water, One is upside down and very broken, the other is on its side, her armaments buried in the sand and depth charges scattered around. They make interesting second dives.
HMS Berkeley – The Royal Navy escort destroyer HMS Berkeley formed part of the attack force for the raid on Dieppe on the 19th August 1942 she was 272x28x8 and had 4×4”guns & 8 smaller guns. At approx 12.50pm HMS Berkeley received a direct hit from German aircraft bombs which broke her back and she sank with the loss of 15 lives.
Today she rests in 20mtrs of water and she is broken into 2 main sections which stand 4mtrs high in places.
HMS Daffodil – During World War Two, three train ferry ships (TF1, TF2 & TF3) which had been built during World War One were requisitioned by the Royal Navy. In 1940 TF1 and TF3 were renamed HMS Princess Iris & HMS Daffodil. They were renamed and named after the ex-Mersey ferries which were used in the famous World War One Zeebrugge raid.
In 1941 HMS Princess Iris and HMS Daffodil were converted into Landing Ship Sternchute (LSS) and used as locomotive transports. HMS Daffodil (ex- TF3) was lost off Dieppe on March 17th 1945 after striking a mine. HMS Princess Iris survived the war only to be broken up for scrap. The fait of TF2 was not so lucky, she was also sunk near Dieppe after coming under fire from German shore batteries and sank close to shore in only 15mtrs of water, today the wreck off TF2 is quite broken up.
HMS Daffodil is a big old wreck she was 107m long with a beam of 18m, she was powered by 2 6 cylinder triple expansion engines giving her a speed of 13knots. Today the wreck of HMS Daffodil wrests in only 24mtrs of water, she sits upright and is pretty intact giving good swim throughs wreck penetration. The marine life on her is superb with large shoals of Bass and Black Bream in the wreckage.
UJ1404/Franken- German Submarine Chaser
The German Submarine Chaser UJ1404 was sunk during the disastrous Dieppe Raid of August 1942.
Seen as a trial run to test the defences for the Normandie Landings in 1944 this raid ended with the massacre & capture of troops from the Canadian Regiments & British Commando Units.
The wreck of UJ1404 rests in 20mtrs water and is over to port by maybe 45degrees. She is quite broken with a gap between the main body of the ship and the bows. A large 88mm gun lays in the wreckage of the bow with munition scattered. As you move back towards the stern the bridge and superstructure is collapsed down & open in places. The boiler, engine, stearing gear & irn prop are all visable. There are depth charges in & around the stern.
This large merchantman some 232x36x14m was taken over by the German navy and used for escort duties.On the 11th of December 1942 she was attacked and sunk by British warships 8 miles to the north of Dieppe, there were only three survivors from the sinking.
I Today this wreck sits on an even keel with the bows being the highest point, she rests in only 25mtrs of water and is very intact, a large gun sits on the bow as if ready for action, with the magazine store below full of ammunition. As you work your way back along the wreck you can explore the large hold area which gives good access for penetration, before you get to the engine room and then on to the rear and the stern accommodation. Debris litters the seabed and on one of our visits, all around the stern were dozens of cuttle fish, a fabulous sight
Sperrbrecher 144 / Le Beijerland.
The Beijerland was a Dutch cargo ship launched in 1939 near Rotterdam. She was nearly 200ft in length & had a beam of almost 30ft and she weighed in at 387 tons. She was powered by a large 12 cylinder engine producing 640 horse power.
The Beijerland was seized by the germans during the invasion of the Netherlands and converted into a armed merchantman & re-named Sperrbrecher 144.
The Sperrbrecher 144 now rests in less than 20mtrs of water and is quite broken open, her large diesel engine sits upright in the middle of the wreckage, as you move to the stern you come across one of her large deck guns with munitions scattered around. Her large rear stearing gear is openly visable and as you make your way back towards the bows you see masses of fish and sand eels all around. The seabed is a mixture of shell, shingle & white sand this gives great visability.
| DESTROYED BY DESTROYERS SPERRBRECHER 178/GAUSS & SPERRBRECHER 144/BEIJERLAND SUNK 1942
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Yatagan – This is the wreck of a small French Destroyer, 185x21x9, She had a top speed of 26knots and her armaments consisted of 1×9 pdr gun, 6x3pdr guns & 2 Torpedo tubes.
She was lost due to a collision with the British steamship Teviot, north of Dieppe on December 3rd 1916, she carried a complement of 62 crew.
Today the wreck rests 33mtrs of water on her Port side, most of her plating has eroded exposing for all to see. Large piles of munitions lay scattered in the wreckage alongside her guns, 2 large prop shafts bend their way along the length of the wreckage and the marine life is amazing – click the ships name to watch the video.
4,035 gross tons, length 386.5ft x beam 41ft, one funnel, three masts, iron hull, single screw, speed 12 knots. Accommodation for 50-1st and 1,200-3rd class passengers. Built 1884 by Chantiers & Ateliers de la Gironde, Bordeaux for the Bordeaux Line, she started her maiden voyage from Bordeaux on 26th Feb.1884 but her rudder was disabled and she arrived at Halifax under tow by the Anchor Line ship CALEDONIA and eventually reached New York on 27th May. Her last Bordeaux – New York voyage was made in July 1888 and she was then chartered to the French Line for their Bordeaux – Havana – Vera Cruz service. On 28th Apr.1889 she was sunk in the English Channel in collision with British ship MANORA.
The Chateau Margaux lies 24miles north from Dieppe in 41mtrs at high water & rests on her starboard side, the bow and stern are the highest points with the middle of the ship collapsed down to the seabed but still quite open and exposing her 4 large boilers. The fish life on this wreck is incredible but strangely no congers The seabed is a fine white shingle shell giving good visability.
Braga 1938 – The Norwegian ship Braga built in 1938, she was 87mtrs long 13mtrs wide and had a draft of 6mtrs, departed Dieppe harbour on 7th Febuary 1961 and headed out to sea, but whilst she was leaving she struck the harbour wall and unbeknown to her, she had made a hole in her hull. The ingress of water must have been quite slow as she managed to get some 20 miles offshore before she sank.
This wreck today lies in 34mtrs of water at an angle of 45 degrees to her port side, still pretty together and ship shape you can access the accommodation areas and swim throughs.
SS Oijfeld – This Norwegian Steamship was built in 1912 she is 250ft long x 38ft beam. A 3 Cylinder Triple Expansion Engine sits exposed in the middle of the wreck with her 2 boilers side by side. This big wreck sits upright on an even keel, rudder & big iron prop still in place.
SS Leeuwarden:
The Leeuwarden was sunk on 24th Febuary when the coaster was sunk by enemy gunfire, she was enroute from London to Dieppe with a cargo 560 tonnes of potatoes
SS Normandie: This French Transport Steamship rests in 32mtrs on an even keel, she is only 50mtrs in length with a narrow beam 8.3mtrs. The wreck is very collapsed down standing only a few mtrs high, The tallest part & standing high in the middle of the wreckage is a single engine and boiler exposed where all the ships plating has eroded & collapsed down around it. Bow & Stern is collapsed down with Prop and Anchor at the appropriate ends. An abundance of life cover this rarely dived wreck with most of the wreck under the shingle.
SS Heim: The Heim was originally built as the SS Romanby by W Gray & Co, West Hartlepool in 1882. She was 260ft x 32ft x 20ft, fitted with a 2-cylinder compound engine. She was sold to T.H. Skogland of Norway in 1899 and renamed SS Heim.
On 18th April 1917 this ex British Cargo Steamer of 1700tons was on a voyage from Hull to Rouen with a cargo of coal when she struck a mine laid by UC-71, She sank North East of Dieppe in 25mtrs of water with the loss of 2 lives.
SS Maine 1917 :
Channel Diver is a 36ft SouthBoats 36/11 catamaran, built to D.O.T. specification and conforming to Marine Safety Agency requirements, she is licensed to carry 12 passengers + 3 crew up to 60 miles from any safe haven. Powered by her twin FPT Iveco NEF engines, each producing 450hp, can give a boat cruising speed of 18 knots and a top boat speed of 25 Knots.
Fitted with the Latest Electronic aids which include Olex & Maxsea seabed mapping systems, Furuno GPS’s, Euronav Seapro Navigation/charting programme on PC Monitors, Simrad Radar, Plotters & depth sounders, 2 x Simrad VHF radio’s & 2 x Standard Horizon VHF Radio’s, Comar AIS Ship Recognition System – Transmit & Receive.
Safety equipment includes two Oxygen Therapy Units, 1st Aid Kit is also carried. A liferaft and life jackets for 16 people, and a full flare pack is carried at all times. Whilst on the boat 3rd party insurance cover up to £5m provided.
The shelter area has seating for 12 people with dry storage inside the seats & hot air heating to keep you warm. There is Tea, Coffee & Hot Chocolate making facilities which you can just help yourselves at any time. A wall mounted monitor screen relays navigation data from the wheelhouse to the shelter so you can see what’s going on around you or if you prefer you can just watch a movie.
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There is also a torch, camera and laptop charging facility as we have 12Volt, 24Volt and 240Volt power supply onboard. There is an onboard toilet, which is manually operated and a wash hand basin, which has hot & cold water. Easy access onto the boat when loading & unloading, this is done through the doors on the stern or the side door on the starboard side.
Diving Charters
Entry into the water is by a giant stride from the rear of the boat. Getting back onto the boat could not be easier, this is via a transom mount Dive Lift, and then you’re back on the level deck of the boat.
A centre bench system for your dive gear, runs down the centre of the boat, cylinders on top and dive boxes and bags underneath, this keeps the deck clutter free and easy to walk around.
For the French weeks, Channel Islands & Isle of Wight trips, there is an onboard compressor, giving a charging rate at 15cfm to a pressure of 232bar.
Deep Sea Fishing Charters
On fishing charter trips, there is plenty of space for all the equipment on the center bench system and there are rod rest holders all around the boat for keeping the deck clear, there is also extra space inside the cabin for all your dry gear. You can fish almost all the way around the deck, there is over 70ft of open fishing area so hopefully not so many tangles.
If you do not poses your own fishing gear, do not worry all the latest equipment can be supplied on board.
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Dive FeCamp – Visit the French fishing town of Fe’camp, This beautiful French fishing village which is situated to the eastern end of the Seine Bay has been a favorite stop over for visiting mariners for centuries. Today this town on the Normandy coast is alive to the hustle and bustle for the French tourist industry, as one of their favourite getaways. It also pays host to the many visiting boats from Holland, Belgium, UK &Scandinavia. It gets so busy in the summer months that it is almost impossible to get a berth for the night.
The Grand Pavois Harbour View from Pavois. Hotel D’Angletterre
There is plenty of accommodation available, French or English, and the Hotel D’Anglettere with its English bar is a favourite. There is also a camp site, 10 minutes from the harbour, which has static & mobile homes for hire or you can pitch your tent. There are also plenty of restaurants and bars to choose from , Chinese, Indian,Italian, French but no English. There are even a couple of kebab take aways next to the harbour, but one of our favorites is The Progress, a French restaurant which over looks the harbour and specialises in sea food, its great value for money.
The Progress Restaurant a local favourite for great seafood.
Night life – there are some late night bars and there is also a Casino & night club on the sea front to the western end of the promenade which stays open until the early hours. Fe’Camp is home to the Benedictine monastery, where the Benedictine wine is produced, visitors are welcomes for guided tours and some sampling. As well as being a major fishing port with a fresh fish market, Fe’camp is full of history, which can be seen all around. If you look high up on the cliff tops you can still see all the remnants of the German gun enplacemmants from the 2nd WW, and up in the town center there is a memorial to the fallen.
After your day’s diving & exploration, relax and take in the late afternoon sunshine at one of the town’s many café’s & bars that overlook the harbour, all of them do meals or snacks to help you soak up that cold beer or glass of wine.
The wreck diving on this part of the Normandie coast can be fantastic and Fe’Camp gives excellent access to the many WW1 & WW2 shipwrecks dotted along this Normandie coastline, the diving is quite challenging and can be very demanding. We offer 2 wreck dives per day whilst in France, tides & times permitting, and one dive on the dys that we cross the channel.
During the 2nd World War, Fe’camp was used by the Germans as a midget submarine base where many successful missions were carried out. successful missions were carried out. From FeCamp we will venture West into the Bay de Seine or North to the offshore wrecks in the Channel, Or maybe heading Eastwards towards St Valery.
The diving around Fe’camp can range from a depth of 20 meters – 50 metres, depending on the experience of the divers on the trip, and the wrecks you will be diving will be mainly from the 1st and 2nd World Wars. However there are many from before & after the wars.
There are lots of unknown targets that we have still to look at and groups willing to be adventurous diving guinea pigs the results can be rewarding
There are lots of wrecks to choose from when diving over in Normandie, many unidentified and most very rarely dived. The marine life is absolutely incredible, teaming with fish, crabs, lobsters, and free swimming congers. The only thing is, the reason that there is so much to see and look at, is because the French have a strict law which states, that no one shall, whilst diving with aqualung remove anything from the seabed or especially from any ship wreck, be it metal or edible. And this is a strict rule which applies to everyone, so please
look don’t touch.
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