Dive Review of Yongala Dive/Stayed in cabin at caravan park at in
Australia/North Queensland,

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Yongala Dive/Stayed in cabin at caravan park at : "Diving the historical wreck Yongala", Aug, 2021, by Andrew Falconer , Bunbury, AU ( Top Contributor 51 reports with 26 Helpful votes). Report 11573 has 2 Helpful votes.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations	N/A	Food	N/A
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	The Yongala sank in a cyclone in 1911, with no survivors among the 121 persons on board. The wreck was not discovered until the 1950s, and is rated as one of the best wreck dives in the world. I dived the Yongala in the 1980s, when living and working in Townsville, and this was my first time back. In those days we got to the wreck from Townsville and used landmarks and baitfish to locate it. You can still dive the wreck from Townsville, but you can also start from Alva Beach, which is a much shorter distance, and of course finding it with GPS is much easier. The beach launch is interesting, and depends on the tide; at low tide it is a long way out and high tide close up. The shop drives the boat down to the beach on a trailer, and when ready, the divers follow by 4WD. Getting out through the shifting sands is interesting. Unfortunately on our trip we were about half way there, when one of the two powerful outboard motors stopped, and we had to return to shore. The problem was fixed and we made a second (successful) trip out to the site in about 45minutes. There were about ten divers, and we split into pairs and groups depending on experience. Current can be an issue, but was not on the day we went out, although the sea was a bit rough. Me and my buddy went down the line tied near the stern of the Yongala, which lies to its side in about 30m of water. After being down for over 100 years in tropical waters, the wreck is covered in corals. As a fish habitat it is second to none, with an amazing amount of juvenile fish that swarm around and inside it. The there also some big schools of travalley and some huge groupers around the bow, not to mention humphead wrasse, bat fish and more. You are not supposed to penetrate the wreck due to the bones of some of the victims still inside, but you can look and around. We did two dives, both of which were memorable for the fish life and corals. Snacks were provided between dives, and on return to the shop there was a sausage sizzle
Websites	Yongala Dive
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vanuatu, South Africa, Iceland, Scotland, Norway, Cuba, Maldives, Chuuk, Galapagos, Phillipines, Sri Lanka, France, Colombia
Closest Airport	Townsville	Getting There	From the airport hire a car to Alva Beach, near Ayr, about an hour south.
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	22-23°C / 72-73°F	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	10-15 M / 33-49 Ft
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	No deco diving
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter	N/A	Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

Report currently has 2 Helpful votes

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Dive Review of Yongala Dive/Stayed in cabin at caravan park at in Australia/North Queensland,

Yongala Dive/Stayed in cabin at caravan park at : "Diving the historical wreck Yongala", Aug, 2021,

Photos Submitted with this Report

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Yongala Dive/Stayed in cabin at caravan park at in
Australia/North Queensland,