The wreck of Kronprins Gustaf Adolf

You know the comic strips and cartoons: Treasure hunters find well-preserved wooden pirate ships lying on the bottom, and dive down to explore them. You'll also probably be aware of the sad fact that the kind of wrecks you see in comics are all long since gone, eaten up by the ship worm until all you have left are some scattered metal parts buried in centuries of sand. And they're too deep for divers anyway. Right?

Well, maybe not quite. There was this Swedish ship of the line called Kronprins Gustaf Adolf, that sailed the Baltic Sea until she was attacked by Russian gun ships and sunk in 1788 in the waters near the Finnish coast. She was a proper war ship, 49 meters long and 13 meters wide. She carried seventy cannons and had a war-time crew of over 500 men. The final attack on her took place during a war that the Swedish king Gustaf III had started against Russia.

                                                               Photo by Pekka Tuuri

Then, after more than two hundred years, the wreck was found by divers and identified in 1995. The remains of the ship are now scattered around an area of about 100 meters by 100 meters on the seabed, but the shape and size of the ship is still clearly visible to anyone who dives to the site.

Definately one of the most awsome wreck dive sites I've ever dived, the wreck of Kronprins Gustaf Adolf is a real wreck-diver's dream come true, with well preserved woodwork, dozens of huge cannons and two large anchors still there to be seen! There are actually loads of well-preserved wrecks of really old ships in the Baltic sea, but the thing with this one is that it's open to public and clearly marked, and not very deep so it is accessible by most divers.

The wreck of Kronprins Gustaf Adolf is located within easy reach by boat, not very far from Helsinki, the capital of Finland. The site of the wreck has been open for public since 2000, so all divers are allowed free access to visit the amazing shipwreck. The wreck is at a max depth of 21 meters, and visibility at the site is normally around 5-10 meters. The site is clearly marked with surface buoys and a rope showing the route around the wreck, making this a relatively easy dive, despite the not-always-so-good visibility.

Remember that the dive season in Finland is quite short, unless you are interested in diving under ice (not uncommon in these parts, by the way). The site of this wreck is not open in the winter, anyway. So the best time to go is in June-August when the water is the least cold. And a dry suit is also a good idea!

A must site for anyone who has ever dreamed of diving at a real, old sunken pirate ship!