Gothenburg Archipelago · Sweden · Wreck
Ussholmen s/s Ardennia
Two boilers and a bent rudder on a 1939 steamer off Marstrand
The Ardennia was a Swedish steamship lost in 1939 at Ussholmen, off Marstrand, and time and salvage have broken most of it up. Among the iron plates the boilers and engine still stand out, and it is a straightforward wreck dive for divers who have not tried one before.
Also known as Ardennia, S/S Ardennia.
Where it is and how deep
57.8490° N, 11.5570° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The easiest way in is to descend the natural cleft on the northwest side of Ussholmen and swim out at an angle to the right until the iron scrap appears. The first recognisable parts are the two large boilers and pieces of the steam engine among the iron plates.
From the engine the propeller shaft runs in a tunnel to the stern, the most intact part of the wreck. Divers can swim under the stern where the propeller once sat, see the bent rudder, and look into the stern section at ladders and similar fittings. Pieces of planking and deck lie all around on a pale shell-sand bottom, and the deepest point is 23 m.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Ardennia
- Type
- Steamship
- Sunk
- 1939
- Cause
- Not recorded
- Lies
- Broken up on a pale shell-sand bottom off the northwest side of Ussholmen, Marstrand, to 23 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime |
Season follows Gothenburg Archipelago: At Trubaduren wolffish are near certain from December to midsummer, and June adds spiny dogfish; March has the coldest water.
Know before you go
- The site is sensitive to the weather in an easterly wind.
Sources
- Ussholmen, Marstrand s/s Ardennia dykplats — dykarna.nu
- Marstrands Dyk & Skeppshandel AB — Marstrands Dyk & Skeppshandel
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