Cabo Tiñoso (La Azohía, Isla Plana & Puerto de Mazarrón) · Spain · Wreck · Artificial reef
Dragaminas (El Nalón)
Groupers hold in the frames of a scuttled minesweeper
Area photo: Ximonic (Simo Räsänen) · CC BY-SA 4.0
The Nalón was a Spanish Navy minesweeper of the MSC-139 Bluebird class, sunk in the Bahía de Mazarrón in June 1999 to build an artificial reef. It lies five minutes by boat from Puerto de Mazarrón with the bow at 28 m and the stern at 36 m, on a bottom of sand and mud. The hull has deteriorated and is not entered, so the dive is a short, deep lap of the outside.
Also known as El Nalón.
Where it is and how deep
37.5547° N, 1.2286° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
Boats leave Puerto de Mazarrón and reach the site in about five minutes, so the dive starts almost as soon as you have kitted up. The descent lands on the shallow end of the wreck: the bow stands at 28 m and the hull runs back and down towards the stern at 36 m, over a bottom of sand and mud. Depth sets the pace here — Buceo Hispania puts the whole dive at 25 to 30 minutes, and that is genuinely all of it.
Work along the outside of the hull rather than through it: the wreck has deteriorated and is not accessible inside. Octopus sit in the openings and groupers hold station in the frames, with forkbeard and slipper lobster using the interior spaces. Off the steel, the operator's species list for the wreck runs to bream, corvina, gilthead bream, barracuda and ocean sunfish. Leave the bottom with the gas for a proper ascent, because there is nothing shallow here to spend a reserve on.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Nalón
- Type
- MSC-139 Bluebird class minesweeper
- Built
- 1952
- Sunk
- 1999
- Cause
- Scuttled on 6 June 1999 to form an artificial reef
- Lies
- On sand and mud, bow at 28 m and stern at 36 m
The Nalón was launched in the United States in 1952 and transferred to the Spanish Navy in 1954, one of the MSC-139 Bluebird class minesweepers. She was sunk on 6 June 1999 in the Bahía de Mazarrón to form an artificial reef, alongside other ships including the Ulla and the Turia. The hull is now deteriorated and is not accessible inside.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Barracuda
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Cabo Tiñoso (La Azohía, Isla Plana & Puerto de Mazarrón): June to September is the comfortable window, and visibility can reach 30 m against a 15 m average; centres run trips year-round, with winter water near 15 °C.
Know before you go
- Nothing on this dive is shallow — 28 m at the bow is the shallowest point, so the whole profile sits deep and the operator gives the dive as 25 to 30 minutes.
- The hull is deteriorated and is not accessible inside; stay outside the structure rather than looking for a way in.
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Dragaminas wreck?+
The bow stands at 28 m and the stern lies at 36 m. Buceo Hispania gives the sand bottom around the wreck as 35 m. There is no shallow part to the dive, which is run as a 25 to 30 minute profile.
Can you dive inside the Dragaminas?+
No. The wreck has deteriorated and is not accessible inside, so the dive stays on the outside of the hull, looking into the frames where groupers and octopus sit.
Sources
- Dragaminas — Scubago — Scubago
- Guía de puntos de buceo en Mazarrón y en la Reserva Marina de Cabo Tiñoso — Buceo Hispania
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