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The most popular shore dive in Jersey is Bouley Bay, a sheltered rocky cove on the north-east coast, with an old granite harbour wall on one side and a rocky promontory called L Islet on the other. The whole bay is fringed by a band of kelp which gives way to sand further out. The variety of habitats is reflected in the vast array of marine life found in this small area, which includes electric rays, lobsters, male pipefish and several different species of crabs and wrasse. Bouley Bay shelves gently down to between 10 and 12 metres and so is suitable for beginners as well as more experienced divers.
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La Corbière lighthouse
on the south-west corner of the island also provides an attractive site for a shore dive, but only on its south side (or the left as you look out to sea). The area between the lighthouse, the shore and the white-painted rock provides a safe shallow area with good visibility and plenty of marine life, but can only be safely dived when the causeway is uncovered. As with all the other dive sites, visiting divers should seek local advice before going in the water.
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The treacherous rocks and half-submerged reefs surrounding Jersey, combined with the swirling tides, has brought many a ship to grief over the years. For the keen wreck diver there are plenty of shipwrecks to explore, many dating from the German occupation of the Channel Islands in the Second World War.
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SS Schokland:
Probably the most visited wreck is the Schokland, a Dutch freighter which sank after hitting a reef in 1943 while under the command of the German forces. She now sits upright, 225 feet long and almost completely intact on the seabed, about a mile off Portelet Bay on the south of the island. Depths to the deck vary from 20 to 30 metres, depending on the state of the tide and, like all of Jerseys wrecks, she must be dived at slack water. Every inch of the wreck is covered in marine life and a huge shoal of pouting hang like a thick silvery curtain over the open holds. The first two holds still contain the remains of their cargo sacks of cement and iron girders that are now home to some huge lobsters and conger eels. The third hold is now eerily empty. It was carrying the occupying German troops who were travelling to France on leave, most of whom perished when the ship went down. Sifting through the silt in this area can still reveal interesting artifacts, as well as many pieces of broken glass bottles and china. Rumour has it that several French "ladies of the night" were also on board and that they too perished when the ship went down. The German authorities of the time always denied the presence of any women on board, but divers have often found perfume bottles, stiletto heels and other such items.
SS Kronwyck:
The Kronwyck, a small armed coaster carrying bricks, also lies off the south coast at a similar depth to the Schokland. She is upside-down, and while most of the hull is intact there is some damage amidships revealing her two large boilers. She also has two large propellers still in place and her gun is lying on the seabed, just off the bow. She was sunk in 1942 by two RAF aircraft which were apparently shot down in the attack and are rumoured to be lying not far from the Kronwyck herself, but have yet to be discovered. The reef she is lying on is as picturesque as the wreck and well worth exploring.
SS Princess Ena:
The Princess Ena was a passenger ship which came to an abrupt end in 1935 when fire broke out in her first-class cabins while on passage between Jersey and St Malo. The fire quickly took hold and the ship sank some 9miles south-west of Corbire lighthouse. The wreck sits in more than 40 metres of water and is reasonably intact, with the hull split into three or four large pieces. The propeller lies on the seabed by the stern and the whole wreck is alive with pollack, pouting and ling.
La Mauve:
A shipwreck with a happier past is the 64-foot long La Mauve, sunk by Jersey Underwater Centre about a mile off Bouley Bay in 1993. Originally used by the States of Jersey harbours department as a maintenance vessel and diving platform, her steam engines only drove her powerful winches; she never had a propeller and so had to be towed everywhere. This 60-year-old ship sits upright on a rocky seabed and is surrounded by a huge shoal of pouting. As a man-made reef she is also attracting other marine life with remarkable speed and her picturesque form provides the ideal subject for the underwater photographer. She lies in between 18 and 30m of water, depending on the tide. Her relatively small size means that it's difficult to get lost on her, which makes La Mauve an ideal first wreck dive. The wreck of a small fishing vessel also lies within feet of her stern.
M343 minesweeper:
On Les Minquiers reef to the south of Jersey lies the German M343, one of four based in the Channel Islands during World War II. After being sunk in action she now rests in just over 30 metres of water and is home to a wide variety of marine life, including some huge conger eels. Her bow section has broken off and twisted on to its port side, but the rest of the ship is more or less intact, with the enormous starboard anchor still in position on her bow.
Other wrecks around the island include the tug Martinique and the Metropolis in St Aubins Bay, and the Magazan and the "armed trawler "which lie to the south of St Helier.
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