THE WRECKS OF ABU NUHAS

Abu Nuhas, also known as 'the Graveyard of Ships', is a must-see for wreck divers like us! The name Abu Nuhas means "Father of Misfortune", and for good reason Friendly Fins! We are located north of Sharm El Sheikh, about 3 hours sailing from the port.

We arrive in this incredible place with a flat sea and the sun that warms already at 9 in the morning, everything seems calm but in front of us appears this circular coral reef almost emerging that has caused the sinking of at least 5 ships...

We are ready to dive: we are here to see the 4 shallowest wrecks of Abu Nuhas but also the abundant marine life that has grown right on top of them.

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We are on a liveaboard and have plenty of time to dive into the history of these wrecks before going to see them in person. The first wreck we will explore is the Carnatic, followed by the Ghiannis D, Kimon and Marcus.

Let's go!

Ready to dive!

The wreck of the Carnatic

The Carnatic was built and launched in December 1862 by the Samuda Bros. shipyard. She was one of the first generation of steamships which, despite being motorized, still had a sailing rig with two large masts and for this reason were classified as mixed-propulsion steamships. She was one of the first ships to be wrecked on the northern side of Sha'ab Abu Nuhas. The Carnatic's last voyage began from Suez on 12 September 1869 with destination the port of Bombay in India. The ship on that last voyage carried passengers and crew, a cargo of cotton bales, copper sheets, mail destined for British soldiers in India, numerous bottles containing wine and “London soda water” as well as 40,000 pounds of gold (equivalent to 1,000,000 pounds today) which were never recovered.

Wreck dive!

On the night of September 13, 1869, the ship collided with the sharp corals of the Abu Nuhas reef. After the collision, Commander P. B. Jones, seeing that the vessel had not suffered serious damage, did not order its immediate abandonment, thus allowing all passengers to spend the night on board while waiting for help to arrive from the ship Sumatra, belonging to the same Carnatic shipping company that was near Abu Nuhas. During the night, the wind began to blow more intensely and the hull did not resist for long: the vessel broke into two pieces. The stern area sank immediately, dragging more than 20 passengers with it, while the bow remained stuck on top of the reef for several months, until a strong storm made it slide definitively to the base of the coral reef. A total of 31 people died and the survivors took refuge on Shadwan Island where they were later rescued by the ship Sumatra.

The stories about the Carnatic still romanticize over the years the presence of hidden and never found treasures, creating a shadow of mystery and spirit of discovery towards one of the first WRECKS of this cemetery of submerged ships.

What struck us about him?

This wreck fascinates us for its resistance to time, it is possible to visit it internally as only the frame remains with these two large trees lying on the seabed of about 22 m. Covered on top by a superbly rich coral reef, despite its sad history, it remains a truly magical place to visit in the silence of the sea.

The wreck of the Ghiannis D

Ghiannis D.

Built in 1969, at Japanese shipyards, this cargo ship sailed until 1975 with the original name of Ghiannis D, after being sold it changed its name to Markos D. Then bought back in 1980 by the Dumarc Shipping Trading Corporation in Greece, it resumed its original name. It was during that period that a huge D was stamped on its funnel to testify to the shipping company, which still appears today in all its majesty as soon as you go under the water. The ship's last voyage began from Rijeka in Croatia in April 1983, where loaded with timber it was headed to the Yemeni port of Hodeida via Jeddah. The Ghiannis sailed peacefully across the Mediterranean to reach Suez a few days later. The Arab-Israeli conflict had not yet ended and for all the ships that had to pass through the canal at that time, customs procedures were a real nightmare. After the checks, the Ghiannis set off again to reach the Strait of Gubal, a very narrow and dangerous passage for cargo ships. The captain, satisfied with the navigation and having verified that everything was in order, after a final check of the route, decided to leave the command to one of his officers and retired to his cabin. Unfortunately, he had not taken into account the presence of the Abu Nuhas reef, erroneously reported on old nautical maps. The Ghiannis was sailing at full speed, skirting the north-west side of the reef. It was April 19, 1983 and the ship followed the fate of many other vessels, hitting the coral reef. The crew abandoned ship, the hull remained stranded above the reef for many weeks at the mercy of the seas, until a storm tore the ship into three pieces, causing it to sink completely on a sandy bottom at about 27m deep (the stern).

What struck us?

The stern of the ship is truly immense with a gigantic propeller and the possibility of visiting the still well-preserved engine room. Its 45-degree orientation could lead to a bit of disorientation and confusion, no fear friendly fins:

"remember that the bubbles always go upwards so follow them!"

All around is teeming with marine life both day and night! We recommend doing it at twilight as we did! Really very suggestive.

The Kimon Wreck - The Lentil Wreck

The Kimon was a cargo ship built in 1952 in Germany. The ship never changed its name from the time it began sailing until the day it sank. In December 1978, the Kimon M., after loading 4,500 tons of stuffed lentils in the Turkish port of Iskenderun, was preparing to face the long journey that would take it to the city of Bombay, its final destination. After two days of calm navigation in the Mediterranean, it reached the Suez Canal ready to cross it, although this was a custom, crossing the canal always requires great attention and the entire journey was officially supervised by the captain. After entering the Red Sea and avoiding the dangers of the Sinai coast, the ship began to orient itself in a southwest direction along the pre-established route. On December 12, 1978, with the engines at full speed, the Kimon M. violently crashed into the eastern corner of the reef of Sha’ab Abu Nuhas and ended up on it. An SOS was immediately launched and received by a nearby ship that prepared to recover the entire crew to transport them to Suez. The strong impact, the winds and the currents, pushed the ship onto the coral reef where it remained stranded for a few days and this allowed the recovery of part of the cargo untouched by the water. After which the cargo began to descend towards the seabed, slowly becoming a new trophy of this “cursed reef”. At that point the last thing left to save were the engines and so it was done, making a large hole in the port area and they were promptly removed before the final moment. Initially the ship was mistakenly identified as the wreck of the Seastar or the Olden, only later was its true identity recognized!

What struck us?

The Kimon is usually snubbed as a wreck and today we wanted to redeem it, exploring it at first light of dawn, honestly this wreck in addition to being really big is very pleasant to visit internally with beautiful wide passages that allow you to visit it from the stern of 26 m to the bow of 14/15 m, then finding yourself in front of a breathtaking coral reef. The whole experience was enriched by a beautiful group of batfish faithful guardians of this wreck; which at one time, fed billions of fish with its lentils!

Kimon wreck!

The wreck of the Chrisoula K (Marcus) - the wreck of the tiles

Relitto Marcus

The Chrisoula K began her career in 1953 built in Germany under the name of Dora Oldendorff. In 1970 she changed company and was renamed Anna B. and with this name she sailed until 1979 when she was finally taken over by the Greek shipping company that renamed her with the final name of Chrisoula K. In August 1981 the ship sailed from Italy commanded by Captain Kanellis with a cargo of tiles headed to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Some sources state that Captain Kanellis personally controlled the navigation from Italy to the Gulf of Suez, including among his duties the request for all the necessary permits for navigation. Arriving in the Gulf he passed the command to one of his officers to have a little rest. True or not the ship continued south until the collision on 31 August 1981 with the reef of Abu Nuhas, which definitively sealed the fate of the ship. The ship was irreparably damaged in the terrible impact; the violence of the impact was such that it caused the complete detachment of the bow that remained on top of the reef for several years until the currents and tides completely disintegrated it. The crew of 21 people was saved by the timely intervention of the Egyptian navy stationed in Hurghada.

This is the popular opinion of the third wreck of Abu Nuhas but is this really its identity?

It is said that in reality the wreck corresponds to the cargo ship Marcus which was also transporting Italian-made tiles to Saudi Arabia and due to a storm had problems with the rudder, losing control and running aground on the scratchy reef of Abu Nuhas a few years before the Chrisoula K. The latter, wrapped even more in a fog full of enigmas, is thought to have found its silent sanctuary at a depth of about 60 meters less than half a mile from the north coast of the reef of Abu Nuhas.

What struck us?

Whether it is Chrisoula or Marcus, I assure you that Friendly Fins is a spectacular wreck for its size and state of preservation. Visited in the late morning with the sun high, the rays filtered through the frame of the ship illuminating this mountain of tiles scattered everywhere!

One thing fascinated me more than anything else though: inside the ship the entire laboratory for the production of these tiles is still preserved, starting from the mold to the firing oven.

Simply insane! This is a real dive into history!

Moored at ABU NUHAS

The compelling stories of these wrecks have filled us with curiosity and unparalleled adrenaline, so much so that their exploration has won over even the most skeptical, personally my favorite is the Marcus wreck with its load of tiles still easily visible today.

And yours?