Shipwreck The Yongala?

[Rascal1933]

Hello!
Looking for some info on The Yongala a shipwreck in Queensland,Australia.
I figured this would be a Great forum to ask Questions about it.
Have any of you dove it yet?
hear it is rated by many as "THE" #1 dive worldwide?

Cheers,
Rascal

[Krakenn]

Gday M8,
<DIV>I dove the Yongala four years ago, it was truly a great dive and a sad story with the ship having gone down in a cyclone.</DIV>
<DIV>The fish life was amazing with some huge groper that looked like small Volkswagon living inside the wreck. </DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>Rascal I have dived Truk Lagoon and to me the Sanfransico Maru at 55m would have to be up there amongst on of the best dives in the world for me. Then there is the Coolidge in Vanuatu and the diving in Madang in Papua New Guinea and the WW2 wrecks andplanes there are special.</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>If you like wrecks and you love fishlife and BIG fish life then the Yongala could be said to be one of the best in the world. From memory it went down in 1911 so there is a fair bit of growth around the wreck.</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>As I recall the dive group that I was with were quite stern about not lettingyou enter the vessel which I could understand but you might like to check up on this if it perturbs you. Then again those Queensland groper could suck you in whole and use your fins to pick their teeth.</DIV>
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<DIV>I dont know if I have helped but what the heck all the best mate see you down there one day.</DIV>
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<DIV>Western Australia!</DIV>

[Rascal1933]

Greeting Krakenn,
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>Appreciate the info on Yongala.</DIV>
<DIV>Yes... Very helpful Thank You!</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>Great information on the other dive locations too.</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>It is my goal to get to your part of the world very soon,and enjoy the diving! </DIV>
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<DIV>Cheers and Take Care,</DIV>
<DIV>Rascal</DIV>

[Krakenn]

Cheers Bloke
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>Ill let you in on a local secret there is a reef in Western Australia right across the continent/Island from QLD and the GBR called Ningaloo it has more coral types than the GBR and more diverse fish life. To expereince a dive with a Whale Shark or a Manta Ray on a feeding Station is one of divings more humbling events pal.</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>While you are over in WA (The best Aussie State) make sure you pop into Monkey Mia and feed the Dolphins off of the beach. Then there are the Stingrays you can feed on the beach edge but Ill be tactful and not go there.</DIV>
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<DIV>Rascal, WA is the bigest State in Oz but it is a long way from Sydney where most of you Yanks fly in buddy - but think about it if you get the chance the four hour flight is well worth it.</DIV>
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<DIV>If your looking for a good link Ill attach the following one for your info mate.</DIV>
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<DIV>Again, I hope I have helped and Ill add one last one for you the old Navy Pier in Exmouth which was a USA Sub Base, has one of the most diverse coral and fishlife dives that you will ever see! - Trust me!</DIV>
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<DIV>www.exmouthwa.com.au</DIV>
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<DIV>Kraks</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>

[Rascal1933]

Thanks Kenn,
You are awesome Mate!
Excellent links and great insider information on the diving.
Appreciate all your help.

Best Regards,
Rascal

[SouthernSeas]

Hi Rascal -

I dived the Yongala a few months ago. Its great, but access is very weather dependent. It's out in open water and subject to strong winds/current -- but its totally awesome if you can do it -- Lots of massive stuff! It looks like the fish are on steroids!

Another big plus of diving off of Townsville (vs. Cairns where most people dive the GBR) is that the coral in the area is in much better shape -- the dayboats out of Cairns are almost not worth it because the spots are so over dived.

You basically have two options to do the Yongala -- a day boat or a live aboard. There are a few dayboat operators that run out of Townsville, Magnetic Island, and Alva Beach (all near Townsville). ProDive Townsville runs a short liveaboard (3 days/nights I think).

I did the ProDive liveaboard -- Except for the fact that the boat was total crap, it was a great trip. You visit a couple of reef spots before going over to the Yongala -- nice combination.

I hear that ProDive is getting a new boat for the liveaboard trip. When they do, I think it will be a fantastic little trip. If you just want to do Yongala on a day boat, I might recommend going out of Alva Beach.

Best,
SouthernSeas

[Rascal1933]

Hello SouthernSeas,

Great information on the dive operators/liveaboards.
Thank You for the heads-up on going out of Townsville and Alva Beach!

Cheers,
Rascal

[gbrdiver]

Yongala is marketed as the best wreck dive in Australia...not the world. It is good dive, but if you are into wrecks you will be disappointed. Government law prohibits any penetration, swim throughs etc and the dive operators seem to take pleasure in ensuring non-compliant divers are reported and fined. The marine life at the site is spectacular. I agree the ProDive liveaboard 'Sea-Esta' is a floating wreck - without a doubt the worst liveaboard I have ever been on. As mentioned, the day-trip options to Yongala are ex Townsville or Alva Beach. Alva Beach is just over an hour south of Townsville and uses an inflatable launched from the beach. It is true that once you are launched the Alva Beach option gets you on site quicker...but I would not do it again. 6 hours in the wetsuit, cold and wet was no fun. Half the boat were so sick when we arrived on site they could not do the dive!

[JediShack]

I dove the Yongala about 7 months ago and it was definitely the best dive I've been on so far. As gbrdiver said it is not a great wreck dive as penetration is prohibited but the shear amount of life there is amazing. I did a day trip out of Townsville and was quite pleased with it. The ride out was about 1-1.5 hours. We had 2 dives with a light lunch provided between. The wreck itself lies 80-100ft down. On my dives I saw bull sharks, rays, a small sea turtle which let me pet him while he was eating , and too many fish to count. Besides the number of fish in such a small area the size was amazing as well, with the Queensland Grouper Krakenn mentioned being the largest I've ever seen. If you are going to be diving in the Townsville area I would definitely not miss the Yongala. From what my divemaster said the current can be strong at times, but on my dives it was hardly noticeable.

[chinacat46]

I dove the Yongala back in Oct of 2007 on the Pro Dive Townsville 3 day liveaboard. Dove the GBR off of Townsville for 2 of the days then did 2 early morning dives on the Yongala. Nice trip but as somebody else already mentioned the boat is crap. Diving was nice though. Yongala is definitely high octane on sealife as there is nothing anywhere near it. All the fish there are on steriods and seem 10-20% bigger there.