The Wreck of the Rhone
The RMS Rhone is a fabulous ship wreck that has brought to life an attractive marine park. It is among one of the most preferred dives in the Caribbean. Its awful tale remains to captivate and mesmerize us.


Captain Woolley selected the closest path to ocean blue with the channel between Dead Chest Island and Black Rock Point on Salt Island. As Rhone came around to come close to the factor the tail end of the storm threw her onto the rocks.

The Background
During the yellow fever epidemic of the 1860s, transatlantic passenger ships stopped routinely at Road Harbour, Tortola and Great Harbour on Peter Island to move guests and freight in between them. Master Frederick Woolley of the Rhone had been cautioned by a dropping barometer that a tornado was coming, yet thinking that the typhoon season was over, he decided to remain at Great Harbour for the transfer with an additional RMS ship, Conway.

Equally as they were passing Black Rock Point between Salt and Dead Upper body islands, the climate unexpectedly altered direction. The initial lurch captured the Rhone on her side and she wrecked against the rocky reef. Tale has it that Captain Wooley was utilizing a silver teaspoon (which remains dirtied in the reefs today) to mix his cup of tea at the time. The wreck is currently a preferred dive site, home to a fascinating array of aquatic life. Most individuals concur that a full exploration of the website calls for two separate dives, as the bow and strict areas are spread apart at various midsts.

The Accident
The Rhone rests under the cozy clear waters of the Caribbean Sea and is a well known dive site today. Site visitors can check out the remarkably undamaged bow area, see where scenes from the 1977 film The Deep were fired, and swim under the demanding near its big 15 foot propeller. This bursting marine park is a reminder of the fragile balance between male and nature.

On 29th October 1867 as Captain Wooley was preparing to secure the Rhone in Road Harbor, the wind and waves shifted and he determined to try to beat the coming close to storm out into the ocean blue. He guided the ship to Black Rock Point in between Dead Breast and Blonde Rock, a set of rough pinnacles rising from the water. The ship struck the rocks and sank in two sections with the cold water of the inbound tide speaking to the warm boilers creating a surge and sinking the vessel with all 123 passengers still linked to their beds.

Snorkeling
Among the most renowned accident dives in the Caribbean, snorkelers can easily discover much of the Rhone by simply drifting on a mask and breathing with the sea. The deeper bow area is especially well-preserved, a kaleidoscope of orange mug corals including yellowtail snapper, sennets and jacks. It's likewise where scenes from the 1977 movie The Deep were shot.

The stern and waistline are much more separated, however they offer a haunting look of a past period. Divers need to plan on at the very least two dives to totally experience the Rhone, especially given private yacht charter that exposure can occasionally be difficult. Highlights include the fortunate porthole, which divers massage permanently luck, and the famous bronze propeller. The rusting skeletal system of the Rhone is a renowned view in the BVI and is a must-see for any type of diving or boating fanatic. The ship is open to the public for expedition, and numerous neighborhood dive boats check out daily. The Rhone is safeguarded by the National Park Service, and entry is at no cost.

Diving
Among the Caribbean's most well known wreckage dives, Rhone is a sought after website for its historical appeal and teeming marine life. It's open and reasonably risk-free, making it suitable for scuba divers of all experience degrees.

The story behind the accident is tragic: as she was transferring guests to another ship, Conway, at Roadway Harbour on Tortola, Rhone rounded Black Rock Point and encountered it at full speed. Warm boilers shattered versus cold salt water and exploded, sending out the Rhone collapsing into the rocks and sinking in mins. Just 23 of the 146 people aboard endured. Their bodies were buried on Salt Island.

The accident split in two when it sank, and the bow area wandered to deeper waters, while the demanding resolved at about 80 feet. Both are swallowed up in reefs and occupied by aquatic life, consisting of schools of yellowtail snappers, sennets, jacks and grunts. It takes a minimum of 2 dives to explore the entire wreckage, though, given that the bow and stern sections are divided by about 100 feet of water.