Glenelg Ships' Graveyard
The remains of two former Department of Marine and Harbours service vessels (a dredge and a hopper barge) were deliberately scuttled approximately 6km off the Glenelg coast, in Gulf St Vincent, in the 1980s as part of the (then) Department of Fisheries artificial reefs program.
Today both wrecks - the No. 3 Barge and the South Australian - lie below approximately 20 metres of water and have become home to a myriad of sea life.
The Scuba Divers Federation has installed a star-dropper trail to enable divers to navigate the 80 metre distance between the two vessels when the current is light.
No.3 Barge (also known as Glenelg Barge)
Location: -34.978958*S 138.441061*E
Vessel type: 30ft steel dumb hopper barge
The Glenelg Barge is a hopper barge that assisted the South Australian (the Glenelg Dredge) to take the silt dredged from the Port River and dump it further out to sea. The barge was scuttled as an artificial reef on 10 April 1984.
Download the fact sheet for more information.
South Australian (Dredge No.2, also known as Glenelg Dredge)
Location: -34.9778*S 138.4402*E
Vessel type: 130ft iron steam dredge
South Australian, commonly known as Glenelg Dredge or The Dredge, was built in Holland in 1911 and arrived in Australia in 1912. The vessel was a self-propelled cutter suction dredge used primarily to dredge the Port River. South Australian was decommissioned in 1982 and scuttled on 16 January 1985, about 120 metres north of the Glenelg Barge, as a recreational resource for divers and anglers. The wreck lies upright at a depth of approximately 20 meters, while the deck level sits at about 15 metres.
Download the fact sheet for more information.
