Thistlegorm in Egypt

I finished 15 minutes ago typing my report about Sharm and Thistlegorm, in Egypt. Emotions there are unique.
I went down twice with Nitrox and inside I could enjoy one f the best dives...

Ciao

If I'm not mistaken, this is the wreck Jacques Cousteau explored and wrote about in one of his books (Silent World or the one after that....). Please give some more details if you don't mind.

Good to see someone from Italy on the board. I go to Turino about 1 to 2 times a year. My companies business unit headquarters are north of Turino. I'd like to get your input on good dive sites near or within a train ride of Turin (Portofino, etc.)

Ciao,

Crawford

Hi Crowford,
about the Thistlegorm I can tell you that was my best dive! Do you speak Italian? I ask you because I put online a report about that in my Diving site (I can't tell the name because my post will be cancelled... but it's in the signiture). The Wreck is very well preserved and can be visited mostly evywhere. The boat is an english cargo of 1940 of 141 mt of lenght. It was firebombed by German Nazi airforce in 1941 while carrying the militar equipement for a ploton.
Inside you can find rifles Lee Enfield Mark III, bullets (form granades 4,7” to bullets .303”), motosidecar BSA M20 and Triumph 3SW, jeep Willis, camion Bedford, cars Morris, two tanks Bren Carriers MKII and locomotive Stanier 8F 0-6-0...
It's 30 mt of depth and so you can use Nitrox and enjoy 2 dives of about 1 hour each.

About Turin (Torino).
I also go sometimes there for job but quite rarely. I think from there you can't goo very far but the best dive you can enjoy is the wreck of Haven, the tanker near Genoa or the UJ2216 near Sestri Levante (50 km east of Genoa).

If you want more info ask me, also via e-mail.
ciao, Marco

The Wreck is very well preserved

Click to expand...

I visited it 3 times from September 1999 to Feb 2001 it I noticed a lot of deteriation over that time, hate to think what it's like now!

I sincerely hope the Egyptians have finally recognised it as a site and have put up permanent moorings. 10-30 boats a day tieing up to the wreck is just going to pull it apart.

Also watch out for the sharp spikes outside the bridge - was once railings, might of completly gone by now.

If you are in that area get across to Abu Nuhas (spelling?!) for the wrecks of the Ghannis D, Carnatic, Chrisoula K and Sea Star (never actually done the latter due to sea state and reported amounts of crown of thorns). Also if you are qualified to go a bit deeper get to the Rosielee Muller (spelling?!) sister ship to the Thistlegorm - didn't make that one cause the skipper could not find it that day!

Jonathan

mad,
I don't speak italian (only a few words and phrases), although I'd love to learn, if I knew I'd have more opportunity to use it. I can say "spaghetti au fruiti di mare" very well in a restaurant! I probably something wrong, but I have no problem eating it!

I saw a picture of a very clear lake in Italy once, I think fed by snow melt from the Alps, and wondered if there were any nice lakes, or springs in northern Italy. I may try to head down to Genoa on a future trip, but usually my stays there are very busy then I head back to the U.S.

Look forward to hearing more about your dive experiences in Europe. I'll get to dive there one day!

Lived in Cagliari and Naples on various tours so I have a word or two available. I'll pass on the lake, Lago Como? Call when you're ready to do the Thistlegorm again, did three there a few years back, with the guy that took Cousteau there...

Jonathan once bubbled...


I visited it 3 times from September 1999 to Feb 2001 it I noticed a lot of deteriation over that time, hate to think what it's like now!

I sincerely hope the Egyptians have finally recognised it as a site and have put up permanent moorings. 10-30 boats a day tieing up to the wreck is just going to pull it apart.

Also watch out for the sharp spikes outside the bridge - was once railings, might of completly gone by now.

If you are in that area get across to Abu Nuhas (spelling?!) for the wrecks of the Ghannis D, Carnatic, Chrisoula K and Sea Star (never actually done the latter due to sea state and reported amounts of crown of thorns). Also if you are qualified to go a bit deeper get to the Rosielee Muller (spelling?!) sister ship to the Thistlegorm - didn't make that one cause the skipper could not find it that day!

Jonathan

Click to expand...

All that free oxygen in Nitrox assisting in the rusting where it gets trapped...Yes, the boats all tie up to it. Sometimes 50 boats!

I wonder how long it will be until the train water tender falls into the hold. It is nearly there, and considering how often this site is occupied, 50%?, it's a good chance someone will be near it. All the damage to the motorbike etc can have only been done by divers...

The Rosalie Miller (not really a sister ship - nickname only) is out of reach of most day boats, some from Hurghada make it though. We we the only boat on the wreck when a day boat turned up. They used a steel wire loop to tie on. Acts like a saw as the boats move on the water. As many boats dont have echo sounders, they use hooks etc to find the wreck, hence the now pulled over funnel. It used to be upright.

As the wreck is too deep (30 to deck) for most nitrox, and less divers go there, perhaps it will last longer than the Thistlegorm has.

Adrian

you don't need to learn Italian, underwater we don't talk too much
here I think divings are lovely but if you fly to Europe than go on to Red Sea

Ciaoooooo