The Wreckage of the Rhone
The RMS Rhone is an epic ship wreckage that has brought to life a gorgeous aquatic park. It is just one of the most prominent dives in the Caribbean. Its tragic story remains to fascinate and captivate us.


Captain Woolley chose the closest path to open sea through the channel in between Dead Upper body Island and Black Rock Factor on Salt Island. As Rhone occurred to come close to the factor the tail end of the typhoon tossed her onto the rocks.

The History
During the yellow high temperature epidemic of the 1860s, transatlantic guest ships quit consistently at Roadway Harbour, Tortola and Great Harbour on Peter Island to move travelers and cargo between them. Master Frederick Woolley of the Rhone had been advised by a going down measure that a storm was coming, but believing that the storm period mored than, he made a decision to stay at Great Harbour for the transfer with another RMS ship, Conway.

Just as they were passing Black Rock Factor in between Salt and Dead Breast islands, the weather condition all of a sudden changed instructions. The first lurch caught the Rhone on her side and she smashed versus the rough reef. Legend has it that Captain Wooley was making use of a silver tsp (which stays encrusted in the coral today) to mix his favorite at the time. The accident is now a popular dive website, home to an interesting range of marine life. Most people concur that a complete exploration of the site calls for 2 separate dives, as the bow and strict areas are spread apart at different midsts.

The Accident
The Rhone rests under the cozy clear waters of the Caribbean Sea and is a renowned dive site today. Site visitors can explore the extremely undamaged bow section, see where scenes from the 1977 movie The Deep were fired, and swim under the stern near its huge 15 foot prop. This brimming aquatic park is a suggestion of the delicate balance in between guy and nature.

On 29th October 1867 as Captain Wooley was preparing to anchor the Rhone in Roadway Harbor, the wind and waves moved and he decided to attempt to beat the coming close to storm out right into the open sea. He guided the ship to Black Rock Point between Dead Upper Body and Golden-haired Rock, a pair of rough pinnacles rising from the water. The ship struck the rocks and sank in 2 sections with the cold water of the inbound tide contacting the warm boilers creating an explosion and sinking the vessel with all 123 passengers still connected to their beds.

Snorkeling
One of one of the most popular wreck dives in the Caribbean, snorkelers can conveniently check out much of the Rhone by merely drifting on a mask and breathing through the sea. The much deeper bow section is specifically well-preserved, a kaleidoscope of orange mug corals reefs including yellowtail snapper, sennets and jacks. It's likewise where scenes from the 1977 movie The Deep were recorded.

The stern and waistline are much more separated, however they offer a haunting look of a past period. Divers need to plan on at the very least two dives to yacht charter service totally experience the Rhone, particularly since exposure can sometimes be difficult. Highlights consist of the lucky porthole, which divers scrub for good luck, and the popular bronze propeller. The rusting skeleton of the Rhone is an iconic sight in the BVI and is a must-see for any kind of diving or boating lover. The ship is open to the general public for exploration, and several local dive watercrafts visit daily. The Rhone is secured by the National Park Solution, and entry is at no cost.

Diving
One of the Caribbean's most well known wreckage dives, Rhone is a sought after website for its historical appeal and bristling marine life. It's open and reasonably safe, making it appropriate for scuba divers of all experience levels.

The tale behind the wreck is awful: as she was moving passengers to one more ship, Conway, at Roadway Harbour on Tortola, Rhone rounded Black Rock Point and encountered it at full speed. Warm boilers wrecked against chilly salt water and exploded, sending the Rhone collapsing right into the rocks and sinking in minutes. Just 23 of the 146 individuals aboard survived. Their bodies were hidden on Salt Island.

The wreckage split in two when it sank, and the bow section wandered to much deeper waters, while the stern cleared up at concerning 80 feet. Both are engulfed in coral reefs and lived in by marine life, including colleges of yellowtail snappers, sennets, jacks and grunts. It takes at least two dives to check out the whole wreck, though, considering that the bow and strict sections are separated by concerning 100 feet of water.