War & Peace Wreck Dive Day

Rainbow Warrior & former naval frigate HMNZS Canterbury Wreck in one fantastic day

This is a chance to dive two iconic Wrecks in one day. You will be transported to the cavallies group of islands either by boat or van depending on conditions. We will dive the Green Peace flagship that was laid to rest in 1986 after being mined and sunk in Auckland at Marsden wharf by members of France’s secret service.

One of our team was involved in the arduous task of gathering evidence and conducting the salvage operation. The Rainbow Warrior is one of those dives you must do, she has accumulated a spectacular array of wonderful life, and there are countless resident fish with amazing colours all around the wreck.

There are lots of nooks and crannies to explore, most of the time you will experience excellent visibility just to top it off. The Rainbow warrior lies on the seabed between 18 and 27 meters and you spend around 25 to 35 minutes the wreck. We will then travel down the coast to Deep water cove which is around 40 minutes aboard Deep 6 our fast RHIB on the way to the Canterbury where will have lunch before diving the Canterbury.

The HMNZS Canterbury is a 113m Leander Class frigate scuttled in Deep Water Cove in the Bay of Islands. She was laid to rest on the 3rd of November 2007 and has become a fantastic dive for recreational divers. The Canterbury was prepared with divers in mind; lots of extra access points have been created to provide ease of entry and exit, this makes for some particularly good penetrations and swim through opportunities.

The wreck sits completely upright and fully intact. The wrecks position in Deep water cove is protected in most conditions; it is a very rare occasion when we can’t get to her. She lies between 12 and 38 meters, visibility will range between 8 and 30 meters. You will get to spend between 20 and 35 minutes on the Wreck and a 5 minute safety stop.

Since the Canterbury was sunk, she has grown a large range of soft corals and kelp outcrops are taking hold. A varied array of fish have inhabited her decks, at times bait fish monopolize large portions of the wreck, in turn attracting there predators Yellow tail King fish sleek, powerful and very impressive. Large schools of juvenile snapper, leather jackets, John Dory, and many others.

After the two brilliant wrecks we return to Paihia travelling back through the Bay of Islands.