Tobermory · Canada · Wreck · Freshwater · Artificial reef
Niagara II
A 55.5 m sand dredge scuttled for divers in 1999
Area photo: Laslovarga · CC BY-SA 4.0
The Niagara II is a 55.5 m sandsucker that the Tobermory Maritime Association put on the bottom in May 1999 specifically to be dived, and she sits inside the 30 m ceiling the local deep charters work to. Unlike the nineteenth-century vessels wrecked around her she went down on purpose, and she is one of the wrecks the operator runs as a night dive as well as by day.
Where it is and how deep
45.2503° N, 81.6017° WPublished position for this site.
Site maps published elsewhere
The dive
This is a purpose-sunk wreck rather than a storm casualty: 55.5 m of sandsucker sitting inside the 30 m ceiling the charters work to, so plan it as a deep dive. The operator warns that its deep sites can have unpredictable currents at depth combined with low visibility and near-freezing temperatures, and no-stop time down there is short enough to shape the whole plan.
She is also one of the sites run as a night dive, which changes the wreck completely — a torch beam on a hull this size gives you one section at a time and nothing else. Whether you dive her in daylight or after dark, a descent on the line, a light you trust and an SMB are the standard kit for a wreck this deep in water this cold.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Niagara II
- Type
- Sandsucker (sand dredge)
- Length
- 55.5 m (182 ft)
- Sunk
- 1999
- Cause
- Scuttled by the Tobermory Maritime Association in May 1999 to create a dive site
- Lies
- Sunk as a dive site in May 1999; dived inside the 30 m ceiling the local charters work to
The Niagara II is one of the park's deliberate additions rather than one of its casualties: the Tobermory Maritime Association sank her in May 1999 to be used as a dive site. That puts a 55.5 m sandsucker on a shipwreck list otherwise dominated by nineteenth-century schooners and steamers lost to reefs, fog and gales, and it is why she carries a date that belongs to divers rather than to a storm.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Off-season | Off-season |
Season follows Tobermory: Public charters run May to October; the water is coldest in February and March and warmest in August.
Know before you go
- Unpredictable currents at depth, combined with low visibility and near-freezing temperatures — the operator runs this as an advanced charter dive for a reason.
- At 30 m the no-stop time is short, and on a night dive a hull this size makes it easy to lose your reference; carry a light you trust and a backup.
Dive videos
Exploring the Niagara II shipwreck · Action Scuba Inc on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Niagara II?+
She sits at around 30 m, the ceiling the local deep charters work to, which makes her an advanced dive with a short no-stop time in cold water.
Can you night dive the Niagara II?+
Yes. She is one of the wrecks the local operator lists on its night-dive public charters, so it is worth checking the charter schedule and booking ahead of the trip.
Sources
- Public Dive Charters — Dive Life Tobermory
- Tobermory Dive Sites — Dive Life Tobermory
- Fathom Five National Marine Park — Wikipedia
In The Logbook
- Ships sunk on purpose, and where to dive themWrecks · 14 min read
- Night diving: the best night dives in the worldNight diving · 12 min read
More dive sites in Tobermory
Bowsprit still extending from an 1852 hull at 32 m
Wreck
A 1940 Lunenburg schooner scuttled for divers at 17 m
Wreck
A steamer down a slope from 18 m to an intact stern at 46 m
A split 1867 hull down a slope from 8 m to 28 m
An 1867 schooner hull still intact in 6 m of harbour water
Wreck
Steamer machinery scattered in 9 m, shallow enough to snorkel
Similar dives elsewhere
Wreck
Aeolus
North Carolina Wrecks · United States
A cable ship broken into three pieces by Hurricane Fran
An upright supply ship with a swim-through wheelhouse at 12 m
A 56 m Navy minesweeper sunk upright off Isla Verde
.jpg){kind=link}
Goliath grouper inside a 56 m hull that sank under tow in 1985, upright at 27 m