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


Captain Woolley opted for the closest route to open sea via the network in between Dead Upper body Island and Black Rock Factor on Salt Island. As Rhone happened to approach the point the tail end of the hurricane tossed her onto the rocks.

The Background
Throughout the yellow high temperature epidemic of the 1860s, transatlantic traveler ships stopped frequently at Road Harbour, Tortola and Great Harbour on Peter Island to transfer passengers and cargo in between them. Master Frederick Woolley of the Rhone had actually been alerted by a dropping barometer that a storm was coming, yet thinking that the cyclone period was over, he chose to stay at Great Harbour for the transfer with an additional RMS ship, Conway.

Equally as they were passing Black Rock Factor between Salt and Dead Chest islands, the weather instantly transformed instructions. The preliminary lurch captured the Rhone on her side and she wrecked against the rocky reef. Tale has it that Captain Wooley was utilizing a silver teaspoon (which remains dirtied in the reefs today) to mix his cup of tea at the time. The wreck is currently a prominent dive site, home to a fascinating array of aquatic life. Lots of people concur that a full exploration of the website needs two different dives, as the bow and demanding sections are spread apart at various depths.

The Wreck
The Rhone relaxes underneath the warm clear waters of the Caribbean Sea and is a celebrated dive website today. Site visitors can explore the extremely undamaged bow section, see where scenes from the 1977 film The Deep were fired, and swim under the demanding near its large 15 foot prop. This bursting marine park is a suggestion of the fragile 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 chose to attempt to beat the approaching storm out right into the open sea. He steered the ship to Black Rock Factor between Dead Upper Body and Golden-haired Rock, a pair of rough pinnacles rising up 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 a surge and sinking the vessel with all 123 passengers still linked 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 simply drifting on a mask and breathing through the sea. The much deeper bow section is specifically well-preserved, a kaleidoscope of orange cup corals reefs teeming with yellowtail snapper, sennets and jacks. It's additionally where scenes from the 1977 film The Deep were recorded.

The demanding and midsection are a lot more broken up, yet they provide a haunting glance of a past period. Divers need rent a yacht to intend on at least 2 dives to fully experience the Rhone, particularly since presence can sometimes be complicated. Highlights consist of the lucky porthole, which scuba divers rub completely luck, and the famous bronze prop. The rusting skeleton of the Rhone is a famous sight in the BVI and is a must-see for any type of diving or boating enthusiast. The ship is open to the general public for expedition, and lots of neighborhood dive boats see daily. The Rhone is safeguarded by the National forest Service, and entryway is free of charge.

Diving
Among the Caribbean's most celebrated accident dives, Rhone is a desirable site for its historic allure and bursting marine life. It's open and fairly secure, making it suitable for scuba divers of all experience degrees.

The story behind the wreckage is terrible: as she was moving guests to one more ship, Conway, at Roadway Harbour on Tortola, Rhone rounded Black Rock Point and encountered it at full speed. Warm boilers shattered versus cold seawater and took off, sending the Rhone crashing right into the rocks and sinking in minutes. Only 23 of the 146 individuals aboard survived. Their bodies were buried on Salt Island.

The wreckage split in two when it sank, and the bow area drifted to much deeper waters, while the strict settled at regarding 80 feet. Both are swallowed up in coral and occupied by aquatic life, including institutions of yellowtail snappers, sennets, jacks and grunts. It takes a minimum of 2 dives to explore the entire wreckage, however, because the bow and demanding areas are separated by about 100 feet of water.