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| Destination: | Hurghada, Egypt | | Depth (ft): | 60 to 150 | Water: | Salt | Current: | None | | Access: | Boat, Overnight | | Difficulty: | Advanced | | Latitude: | | Longitude: | | | | Address: | Red Sea
Hurghada
Hurghada, Egypt | | Typical Apparel: | | | Best Feature: | not so many diver | | Worst Feature: | a bit deep and sometimes bad viz |
| | | She has been called “the sister ship of Thistlegorm but to be honest The Rosalie Moller deserves better prefix. She might not have quite as an exciting cargo but as a wreck she is light-years ahead of her famous sister. Here is her story in short.
It was called “Best Welsh” and it was an absolute necessity for the allied navy; coal that burned with a higher temperature, hence more efficient and less smoke. Therefore you would get further on “one tank” and see your enemy before they saw you. This was the precious cargo of Rosalie Moller as she steamed into the Red Sea, more or less in the wake of Thistlegorm.
She was built in Glasgow and was launched as The Francis in 1910 but was renamed Rosalie when she was bought by the Moller Shipping Line. She was working in China until she was drafted by the British navy. The Mediterranean was not safe, so what was about to become her last voyage, bound for Alexandria, took her on the route all the way around Africa and into the Red Sea. Two days after the sinking of Thistlegorm she was waiting at Safe Anchorage H when she was attacked by Heinkel III bombers. She was hit in hold #4 and started to sink rapidly while the crew took to the lifeboats. Everybody except two survived.
You need at least two dives for this wreck and how to plan the dive entirely depends on conditions and gas-mix/consumption. There are few highlights that you should not miss. Obviously you might want to forget about the propellers and rudder since they are sitting in 45m of water but the bow is a fabulous photo object. If you want to descend into the engine room you should bring a torch. It is easy to penetrate and you can still see the readings on the gauges. Most of the deck is on 35m and as you explore the deck level of the superstructure, visit engineer’s room and workshop, the doctor’s room with medical supply storage room plus, right outside on starboard side; the blast hole where the bomb hit hold #4.
The second level of the super structure is where you find the big funnel that has fallen over to the portside. The wheelhouse was made of wood and is long gone. On your way back up, at 20m you come across one of the most photographed features of the wreck, the spectacular crow’s nest of the foremast. The aft mast has fallen to starboard after too many boats have used it for mooring.
The current can be wicked and the visibility is sometimes less than desired. This together with the depth suggests that you need some experience beyond entry level to be able to safely pull this dive off.
Type: General Cargo
Built: 1910
3963 ton – 108.2 m
Engine: tipple expansion engine
Sank: October 8th 1941
Depth: 55m
North – south axis | | |
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| Monthly Water Temperature | | No data available. |
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