After three years of planning and postponing due to COVID, this summer we finally went ahead with the shipwreck expedition in Egypt. We chartered the liveaboard vessel Red Sea Explorer, which was our base for a week of shipwreck diving in the northern Red Sea. We were accompanied by a great group of 20 people from around the world, many of whom were seasoned Shipwreck Survey veterans.
We started the week off with a presentation on the maritime history of the Red Sea, in order to provide some context to the shipwrecks and the general region we were going to be diving in. On the boat, the curriculum consisted of presentations on the history of each specific shipwreck and various underwater archaeological dilemmas which led to interesting discussions.
Up to four dives a day were offered, during which we explored all the wrecks that make the Red Sea such a great destination for history buffs: Carnatic, Krisoula K, Giannis D, Dunraven, Kingston, and perhaps the most spectacular shipwreck in the world: the SS Thistlegorm. Some sites were dived multiples times – we managed to do five dives on the Thistlegorm! At all the wrecks we had to option to go inside to explore the engine rooms or marvel at the fascinating cargo. We also did a few dives on the Red Sea’s colorful coral reefs.
We had a blast getting wrecked and diving into history with a fun group of people, which inspires us to seek out new and exciting dive destinations for upcoming educational shipwreck diving trips. Thanks to Bill, Vida, Tim, Elissa, Sierra, Dylan, Jamie, Sean, Twan, Jimmy, Katie, Allie, Ryan, Nyah, Vivian, Mike, Nikki, Kate, Jack, and Christine for a fantastic trip. We hope to dive with you all again soon!