Aarhus Historic Shipwreck

In Australia, "Aarhus" Historic Shipwreck is a historical site preserving one of the victims of Smith's Rock. The "Aarhus" was a 640 tonne sailing barque built in 1875 in Hamburg, Germany. She was 170 ft (52 m) long.

While carrying a general cargo including kerosene from New York to Brisbane, Australia, she hit Smith's Rock, which lies about two nautical miles (4 km) north-east of Cape Moreton, and sank on February 24, 1894.

The remains of the ship now lie upright in 20 metres of water, though most of the ship has been reduced to plates and ribs sticking out of the sand. It has been gazetted under Section 7 of the "Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976" which provides for a special protected zone of 200m around the wreck. Any disturbance activity is prohibited; divers are required to apply to the director of the Queensland Museum for a permit to access the wreck.

The Esperance Star [ [http://www.diveoz.com.au/feature_articles/read_story.asp?story=6 www.diveoz.com.au] ] and the "MV Nautilus" [ [http://www.nautilusscuba.com.au/trips.html www.nautilusscuba.com.au] ] both currently hold permits to dive this historic wreck. This site has lots of interesting life, from macro to large batfish at cleaning stations everywhere. Another point of interest is the large mast-like object that is actually the bowsprit. This area has a cat shark inside the bowsprit and a large wobbegong shark under the scoured out section. The site can have very good visibility but a strong current makes it hard to see the entire wreck in one dive.

ee also

*List of shipwrecks

References