Wreck Dive

It was a strange sight for me watching a ship of that size slip below the water. It seemed wrong at the time, but now that I dive it most days I can't think of a better thing to do with an ex navy ship than to put her on the bottom of the ocean so others-both fish and people-can enjoy her presence, albeit under water.

I was working in Tutukaka at the time of the sinking. As the Bay of Islands boy at Dive! Tutukaka I was given the job to bring ''Perfect Day'' their brand new 25 metre tour boat up the coast with a full load of people on board to watch the sinking.

We arrived in Deep Water Cove about 45minutes before the planned sinking and took up a prime position inside the Cove looking out at the Canterbury. There must have been a few hundred boats anchored around the soon-to-be wreck, which in itself was an amazing sight. Unfortunately, though, the sinking was delayed by a couple of hours. I say 'unfortunately' because I had about 80people on board and all they had to do while they waited was drink the beer and wine they had brought along for the trip!

HMNZS Canterbury was one of two broadbeam Leander class frigates operated by the Royal New Zealand Navy from 1971 to 2005. She was laid down in June 1969 by Yarrow Ship builders and launched nearly a year later in May 1970.

Canterbury went on to see operational service in much of Australasia and other regions like the Persian Gulf, undertaking operations in Iraq and peace-keeping in East Timor. She and her sistership, HMNZS Waikato, relieved the Royal Navyfrigate HMS Amazon in the Indian Ocean during the Falklands War and later, on her own, relieved the frigate HMNZS Otago, at Mururoa during anti-nuclear protests. She had quite a history.

Finally, on the day, the button was pressed and with a big bang and a billow of smoke she slipped beneath the water. Five years on she is now home to hundreds of fish, covered in Jewel Anemones, and is a spectacular dive.

If you have never done a wreck dive before the Canterbury is a perfect wreck to start on. It was set up for diving, there is plenty to see and relatively safe. At 38 metres it is a little on the deep side so I recommend contacting Paihia Dive for information about the wreck, or book one of our daily trips.