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insta@TecDivingSriLanka |
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Hawkfish at the Pecheur Breton Cargo Wreck
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Shrimp at the newly discovered Whip Coral Reef |
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Colombo is certainly known as one of the best places to dive Shipwrecks for sure. But it is also quite a good place for those with a penchant for the little things in life. Many of the shipwrecks such as the Pecheur Breton Cargo Wreck is home to many small and interesting species of life. However there are some reefs, that one can say, specialize in offering the diver a muck diving experience. Formosa Reef, Bora Bora and the newly discovered Whip Coral Reef are such dive sites situated in very close proximity to Colombo where one can, if one has the patience, discover a splendid little nudibranch, tiny blennies or many such macro wonders. |
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The MV Astoria sank near the Colombo Harbour in 1997 during a storm. Even though resting at a shallow depth of 24 meters it is inaccessible because of its close proximity to the harbour - lying just 500m southwest from the breakwater. Click here for more information. |
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Athelstane: Over the hull of the tanker |
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Athelstane: Rear facing stern mounted gun |
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Two of the best wreck dives in Sri Lanka are in Kalmunai, in the east coast. Still very much off the beaten track, special expeditions have to be organized to dive these wrecks (Dive Centers in Batticaloa may organize expeditions on request)
The SS Athelstane lies at a depth of 42 metres (at the stern) to 35 metres (at the bow). About one kilometre away lies the smaller HMS Hollyhock at 42 metres, resting atop a small drop off that reaches 50+ metres.
Best explored by Technical Divers, these are two world class shipwrecks. Read more about the SS Athelstane and the HMS Hollyhock. |
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The HMS Hollyhock |
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HMS Hollyhock wreck - amidships |
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February 2016 - Just before Ghosts of the Deep - shipwrecks of Sri Lanka goes to print, I find another fabulous shipwreck at 40 meters depth. Just managed to insert two pictures for the page VI and VII of the book! Click here for more pictures. |
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The delightful Lotus Barge off Colombo |
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Bannerfish and snappers at the Lotus Barge |
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February 2016 - In the sea of barges, I find another small but beautiful wreck. A great dive for sure! Welcome to the Lotus Barge in Colombo. |
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10/06/2016 - 12/16/2016 - Dive Sri Lanka in associate with the Sub Aqua Club of Sri Lankaconduct a video survey of the dive sites in Kayankerni, Vakarai.
Because of El Nino, it was feared that many of the lush reefs of Kayankerni would be terribly bleached. We were glad to find out that the bleaching was minimal and overall all was well. Click here to view the survey video.
We also dived the World War II British Sergeant and and the Lady McCallum SS that sank in 1926 |
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SS British Sergeant (1942) |
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A Panther whipray near the SS Lady McCallum (1926) |
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14/06/2016 - Happy to see a positive review by pioneer diver David Strike about my book Ghosts of the Deep! containing my underwater photography of Sri Lankan shipwrecks |
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13/02/2016 - Based on information by a fisherman I discover another wreck at 29 metres. Click here for more information and read "Ghosts of the Deep - Diving the Shipwrecks of Sri Lanka" |
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MV Tricolor (1931) |
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At 65 metres, this wreck is probably the remains of the MV Tricolor |
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Far out in the sea off the coast of Beruwala, lies a mystery deep shipwreck at 65 metres of depth. Based on several investigative dives conducted at the site, I believe this to be the Norwegian vessel MV Tricolor that was lost in 1931 after a catastrophic explosion. Click here for more information |
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At the launch of Ghosts of the Deep at ADEX 2016 Suntec City Singapore |
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Author/Editor speaks at ADEX 2016 TEKDIVE Conference |
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April 14-17: As a underwater photographer in Sri Lanka and a wreck explorer I was privileged to represent Sri Lanka at the ADEX 2016 International Dive Convention/Exhibition at Suntec City, Singapore once again and make two presentations: "Informed Wreck Diver - The art and science of unravelling deep mysteries" and "Diving World War I and World War II shipwrecks in Sri Lanka". I addition I was happy to launch "Ghosts of the Deep - Diving the shipwrecks of Sri Lanka" at the ADEX 2016 Book Festival. The book is now for sale in most Vijitha Yapa stores. International customers can order online at http://www.vijithayapa.com/product/view/30446
Watch the 90s promotional video on the book |
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Finally hot off the print and now available at VY book shops |
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For sale at the Vijitha Yapa book store at Bandaranaike Int. Airport. |
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Working on the cover - A sample print |
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12/03/2016 - My forthcoming book on shipwrecks of Sri Lanka with hundreds of underwater photos of Sri Lankan wrecks is almost ready. The book will be published by Vijitha Yapa and printed by Gunaratne Printers - both leaders in the publishing and printing industry in Sri Lanka. If you wish you may pre-order a copy of this limited edition book through http://www.vijithayapa.com/product/view/30446 . The book will be only available for sale in Sri Lanka but you can order it on-line with an additional shipping charge.
Also have a look at our short video promo - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMBGrJ1EMds |
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The bow |
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The stern |
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20/02/2016 - I locate another wreck at 40m depth off the coast of Colombo. What a beautiful place! This age of steam wreck is about 50-60m long and lies at a depth of 40 meters. I am happy that I was able to get two pictures into my forthcoming book - Ghosts of the Deep, just before it went into print! More information on this wreck soon! |
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Thrilling first glimpse of the Lotus Barge |
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Snappers, Cardinalfish and beautiful black corals at the Lotus Barge |
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07/02/2016 - Based on information by fishermen I find two more barges. The Cardinal Barge (named becaues of the abundance of cardinalfish on the wreck) is a badly broken up wreck north of Colombo. The second barge - named as the Lotus Barge is a very beautiful place! Amazing marine life including a huge baitball lives there. Both wrecks are at 30 meters of depth. More details here soon! |
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At the stern of the Cardinal Barge |
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A haze of Cardinalfish |
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10/01/2016 - Based on a tip by a fisherman I go in search of a small barge that is supposed to be close to the shore. A brief sonar scan reveals a strong signature in surprisingly shallow depths. The water is so clear that I snorkel over the point and am surprised to see a small but fully intact wreck. Diving in we are surprised to find a beautiful dive site. Along a rocky reef rests, what appears to be a, navy gun boat / patrol craft. At 14 m depth this is a great dive site for divers all levels. Await more information soon! |
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A sample proof of Ghosts of the Deep - Diving the Shipwrecks of Sri Lanka by Sri Lankan underwater photographer Dharshana Jayawardena |
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07/12/2015 - OK so I missed the December deadline for publishing the long awaited book on shpwrecks of Sri Lanka, but happy to inform fans of Dive Sri Lanka that the book is almost ready! Seriously writing a book is hard. Don't try it at home. Please be patient - hoping to get enough copies to book stores near you soon. |
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Last year we had a great year of diving and exploration! See the Year 2015 report |
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(C) www.DiveSriLanka.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction of any material from this site is strictly prohibited. |
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Dharshana Jayawardena is a leading Sri Lankan Underwater photographer, a wreckographer and Welcomes you to Sri Lanka! It is the best location in the Indian Ocean to Scuba Dive in the warm tropical seas and wonderful beaches. Sri Lanka offers some great Wreck Diving experiences such as the H.M.S Hermes, SS Rangoon, H.M.S Conch, The Earl Of Shaftsbury, H.M.S Diomede, and some Surat Silver Coin wrecks at the Great Basses & Little Basses Lighthouses off Kirinda and Yala. Sri Lanka offers many courses such as PADI Open Water, Advanced, Rescue, Dive Master but yet to offer NAUI, PSAI, TDI, SDI, Nitrox, Trimix, Heliox, Solo Diving Technical Dive Courses or Liveaboard Diving. Shore diving is a possibility. Sri Lanka also is famous for whale migration, dolphin watching and very occasionally for sightings of Tiger Shark, Black Tip Reef Shark, White Tip Reef Shark, Manta Rays. Reef fish such as Moray Eels, Puffer Fish (Fugu), giant turtle, Lionfish, Snappers, Sweetlips, Trevally, Barracuda, Fusiliers, Anemonefish are very very common. Some dive sites are better than Maldives, The H.M.S Hermes is a fantastic and exciting dive in Batticaloa. The H.M.S Vampire which accompanied the H.M.S Hermes is yet to be found. Surat Silver Coin treasure was found by Sir Arthur C. Clarke and Mike Wilson at the Great Basses Ridge. The coins were minted by Aurenzeb, the son of Shah Jehan who built the Mumtas Mahal (Taj Mahal). There are also wrecks of Japanese Zeros in the China Bay and Marble Beach area. The statue of lord ganesh can be seen at the Swami Rock dive in Trincomalee. pigeon Island in Trincomalee is also famous for great diving and snorkeling. This site features original photos and stock photography of the ocean and the under sea. You will also be surprised abou the diving opportunaties in Colombo. Colombo diving and colombo wreck diving is some of the best wrecks in the world |