Florida & Russell Islands · Solomon Islands · Wreck
Base 1
The cut-off bow of the cruiser USS Minneapolis in a war junkyard
A former wartime patrol boat base and ship repair yard off Tulagi, now an underwater junkyard of war litter. Artillery shells, steel barrels, coils of wire and plane wings lie alongside an American landing craft and the severed bow of the heavy cruiser USS Minneapolis.
Where it is and how deep
9.1015° S, 160.1500° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The dive reaches a maximum of 26 m across the old yard. Scrap from the war covers the bottom, from artillery shells and steel barrels to coils of wire and aircraft wings, and among it sit an American landing craft and the bow section of USS Minneapolis, cut off after the cruiser was badly damaged.
The wreck
- Vessel
- USS Minneapolis (bow section) and an American landing craft
- Type
- Heavy cruiser bow section and landing craft
- Cause
- The cruiser's bow was cut off after she was badly damaged
- Lies
- Among war scrap on the floor of the old Tulagi repair yard, to 26 m
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Florida & Russell Islands: Diving runs all year; the northwesterlies of November to April bring more rain and the odd squall or cyclone that can reroute a trip.
Sources
- Tulagi, for lovers of Rust and Reef — Diveplanit
More dive sites in Florida & Russell Islands
Drift
Up to a dozen mantas feeding in formation along a channel reef
Wreck
A New Zealand minesweeper sunk while refuelling in Tulagi Harbour
Cave & cavern
Sunbeams in a jungle-roofed cut that ends in a surfacing pool
Cave & cavern
Swim-through into a jungle pond, then pygmy seahorses on the wall
Pinnacle
Two vertical shafts that drop through the reef to a wall exit
Wreck
The US Navy's first purpose-built oiler, guns still in place
Muck & macro
Dumped WWII trucks and macro life in a mangrove setting
Similar dives elsewhere
A cargo hull upright at 30 m, lit through its own skylights
Wreck
American Wreck
Labuan & Brunei Wrecks · Brunei
USS Salute: a 56 m minesweeper mined in 1945, broken in two at 22–32 m in Brunei Bay
Wreck
Australian Wreck
Labuan & Brunei Wrecks · Brunei
SS De Klerk: an 85 m Dutch steamer on her port side at 28–34 m in Brunei Bay
A 133 m transport whose engine still breaks the surface