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Carlisle Castle Shipwreck, WA Australia
| Address | 43 Kent Street,
Perth
Western Australia, 6168, Australia | | Enquiries : | Send an enquiry to Carlisle Castle Shipwreck | | Telephone Enquiries : | 08-9592 3464 |
The waters off Rockingham, less than an hour from Perth, are home to a myriad of marine life and submerged reefs, plus a number of picturesque historic shipwrecks. The West Coast Dive Park has been established here to create an array of SCUBA diving experiences at this great location.
One great diving experience is on the wreck of the Carlisle Castle, located on Coventry Reef, three kilometres west of Penguin Island.
The Carlisle Castle was built in London and was due to arrive in Fremantle in July 1899. On July 11th a force 10 Westerly storm swept through the area creating treacherous conditions. Popular belief is that with such a heavy load the ship sunk immediately on contact with the reef, and the crew of about 25 went down with the ship. A monument for the victims was erected at Fremantle Cemetery.
The wreck, including its cargo of railway lines, water pipes and house bricks is spread over 50 square metres. The wreck lies in about seven and a half metres of water on an exposed rock bottom and is covered in heavy marine growth.
Surrounding the Carlisle Castle there are numerous ledges where such fish as the Western Australian Dhu fish and queen snapper shelter. You'll find yourself diving among plenty of colourful reef fish including wrasse, harlequin, footballer sweep, fox fish, blue devil fish, truncate coral fish and perhaps the odd hammerhead or leafy sea dragon. There are often dolphins playing near the surface on the way to this site and occasionally even seals.
The water clarity is high, and the area is outside major boating and shipping channels. There is good diving throughout the year, depending on daily weather. In summer, morning dives are best, before the afternoon sea breeze arrives, while calm winter days can offer enjoyable diving conditions, water temperatures are moderate year round.
Dive sites require boat access. There are a number of local dive companies who run regular tours in the Dive Park.
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| Activity | Scuba-Diving, Snorkelling, Swimming. | | Entity Facility | Car park. | | Experience | Marine. |
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