Nanaimo & Gabriola Island · Canada · Wreck
HMCS Cape Breton
Six decks of navy ship, the largest artificial reef in the Pacific Northwest
HMCS Cape Breton is a 134.6 m (441 ft) navy maintenance ship sunk near Snake Island in 2001. Six decks high, it is the largest artificial reef in the Pacific Northwest, a deep and expansive wreck with dramatic vertical relief that suits divers already comfortable at depth.
Also known as Cape Breton, The Cape Breton.
Where it is and how deep
49.2147° N, 123.8845° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
The hull stands upright on a seabed at 44 m (145 ft); its crow's nest reaches to within 12 m (40 ft) of the surface and the main deck lies at 30 m (100 ft). The dive usually stays in the 30–40 m range, depending on the tide and the route taken over its multiple decks, and the top of the wreck is often the best starting point. The superstructure and upper decks are covered in plumose anemones, and rockfish, lingcod and perch shelter along the railings and in the cutouts.
The wreck
- Vessel
- HMCS Cape Breton
- Type
- Cape-class maintenance ship (ex-HMS Flamborough Head)
- Length
- 134.6 m (442 ft)
- Built
- 1944
- Sunk
- 2001
- Cause
- Scuttled near Snake Island as an artificial reef by the Artificial Reef Society of British Columbia
- Lies
- Upright on the seabed at 44 m (145 ft)
The ship was launched in 1944 as HMS Flamborough Head for the Royal Navy, later served the Royal Canadian Navy as HMCS Cape Breton, and was paid off into the reserve in 1964. On 20 October 2001, without its engines and a short section of its stern, it was sunk on purpose near Snake Island, off Nanaimo.
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 | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime |
Season follows Nanaimo & Gabriola Island: Clearest water runs September to March; spring and summer blooms cloud the surface layer.
Dive videos
HMCS Cape Breton, Nanaimo BC, Jul 2021 · Scubicon on YouTube
Sources
- HMCS Cape Breton dive charter — Nanaimo Dive Outfitters
- HMCS Cape Breton (ARE 100) — Wikipedia
Photo credits
- A driftwood-strewn gravel spit runs out to low sandstone ledges, with calm blue water on both sides and a distant island under a clear sky. by David Stanley from Nanaimo, Canada, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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