SAS Fleur

城市概覽

Position S34°10.832’ E018°33.895’ 1 SAS Fleur wreck (approximate centre of wreckage) S34°10.846’ E018°33.903’ 2 SAS Fleur wreck (Bow) S34°10.820’ E018°33.887’ 3 SAS Fleur wreck (Stern) This site is not in a Marine Protected Area. A permit is not required.

Name

The "SAS Fleur" was a ‘Bar’ class boom defence vessel, formerly HMS Barbrake, The SAS Somerset is a sister vessel to the Fleur and is moored at the V&A waterfront in Cape Town as a museum vessel. As of 2017, it was closed to the public. The Fleur was scuttled on 5th April 1966, south of Seal Island, and north of Whittle Rock.

Depth Maximum depth on the sand is 41 m, The main deck was at about 35 m and the top of the superstructure at about 33 m, but the superstructure is completely gone and the main deck has largely collapsed as of July 2021. The boiler protrudes through the deck and has become the highest point of the wreck. The debris field has become wider with wreckage falling off the sides.

Visibility Visibility is variable and unpredictable. This is a site where visibility can be very poor in a layer a few metres above the bottom, while quite a bit better a bit shallower. The top of the cloud has been estimated at between 35 and 30 m on different occasions. The cloudy water can have visibility in the order of 1 to 2 m, while a metre above it (an extreme case), visibility may be 5 to 10 m. The cloudy water is very easily disturbed by divers, even passing a couple of metres above it can cause it to billow up into the clearer water. The transition between good and bad visibility can be surprisingly abrupt before it is disturbed. On a well illuminated day the cloud appears pale, but if the top water is dark due to heavy plankton near the surface, the cloud appears dark. The reason for this is not known, but the stratification is very flat, so it is probably related to a density variation, possibly a thermocline, though no-one has reported a noticeable temperature difference between the clear and

如何抵達

The site can only be accessed by boat. It is 9.5 km from Miller's Point slipway, or 12.7 km from Simon's Town jetty, and can also be reached from Gordon's Bay or Kalk Bay

必看景點

Marine life

The wreck is heavily encrusted on the deck by mussels and all over by an astonishing number of strawberry anemones in pink, orange and nearly white. There are also fairly large numbers of Cape urchins, Sinuous and Multicoloured sea fans, some small barnacles, bushy hydroids, and occasional bryozoans. The interior is home to large numbers of White Seacatfish. Kingklip may also be seen. If you are visited by seals at the safety stop it is considered lucky, as it is then presumed less likely for sharks to be nearby.

Features Steel wreck of World War II vintage ship in partially collapsed condition.

Photography Good site for photography if visibility is good. There are opportunities for some interesting wide angle shots showing the collapsing structure, but only if the light is sufficient. The subjects for close-up and macro work are limited.

Routes For your first dive on the wreck, explore the exterior. The wreck is small enough to visit the whole site in one dive. Swim around the hull and over the deck, noting the general layout, and looking into the various holes and breaks. The exact route will depend on where the shot lands, and the following assumes that it lands near the stern on the starboard side. Start by identifying where you are on the wreck, so you can find your way back to the shotline, then swim to the stern, and take a look at the rudder and propeller brackets. These are in a scour pit in the sand and this will probably be the deepest point of the dive. Return to deck level and swim along the sheer line (where the deck edge meets the hull side: on this ship it is rounded near the stern). Swim forward to the superstructure. You can make a detour into the opening in the quarterdeck if conditions are suitable, then forward along the side, past the superstructure to the foredeck. Continue forward to the bows, which are one of the more interesting features of the vessel, as they have a large gantry for handling moorings and other heav