The Yongala is a 110m former steel passenger and freight steamer. It sank in 1911 during a tropical cyclone with its 124 passengers. The Shipwreck was found only in 1958 and is now a main tourist attraction in Australia. The sea floor surrounding the wreck is open and sandy, so the wreck has become an established artificial reef, providing a structurally complex habitat for a diverse range of marine life. In 1981 the wreck was sketched by marine biologist Leon Zann. Although the superstructure of the wreck remains intact and very much like this sketch, the significant buildup of sand around the starboard side of the vessel has been scoured away, and the ventilators and railings have collapsed.

We were staying on magnetic island just North of Townsville in Queensland Australia. We booked with Adrenalin Snorkel and Dive, they picked us up on the island on the way to the wreck.

• Divers: Simon, Jane
• Max Depth: 27.6
• Dive Time: 43
• Water temperature: 25 C
• Viz: 10 meters
• Dive Details: I think this is one of the best wrecks I have ever dived on, so much to see. Because the wreck is surrounded by sand lots of fish use it as a safe haven and it has become an artificial reef over the last 100 years. The current was quite strong at the surface but there was a rope from the dive charter to the buoy.