Diving the S.S. Yongala

The S.S. Yongala is one of Australia's most famous shipwrecks and one of the country's outstanding wreck dives. The wreck lies offshore from Alva Beach, Queensland, south of Townsville, and has become an artificial reef supporting a remarkable abundance of marine life. Yongala Dive, based at Alva Beach, offers day trips to the wreck, usually including two dives. The journey takes about 30 minutes by fast boat and can be quite rough, depending on the weather and sea conditions.

The Yongala was a passenger and cargo steamship operating between Melbourne and Cairns. On 23 March 1911, while sailing north along the Queensland coast, the ship encountered a severe cyclone. The Yongala disappeared without sending a distress signal, and all 122 passengers and crew on board lost their lives.

The wreck was discovered in 1958 and today lies on the sandy seabed at a depth of approximately 30 metres. More than a century underwater has transformed the Yongala into a habitat for corals, sponges, fish, and other marine organisms. The wreck is particularly well known for its large Queensland groupers, schools of trevally and barracuda, olive sea snakes, turtles, and eagle rays.

The Yongala is both a protected historic site and a maritime grave. Divers are not permitted to enter the wreck, and the site should be treated with appropriate respect. It is not simply an artificial reef or a piece of maritime history, but also the final resting place of the people who died aboard her.

I visited the Yongala during the Australian winter, when the sea was quite rough and visibility was limited. Despite these conditions, the diving was remarkable. Huge schools of fish surrounded the wreck, hundreds of barracudas moved through the water, and olive sea snakes were abundant. Large Queensland groupers added to the impressive scenery.

The combination of the historic wreck and the extraordinary concentration of marine life makes the Yongala a memorable dive. For me, it remains one of the most remarkable dive sites in Queensland.