USS Kanawa (Wreck)

Best months: Jul–Oct

Protected Area

Tulagi Island

Why dive here

With 391+ marine species recorded in the area - including barracuda, blacktip reef sharks, grey reef sharks, humpback whales and orcas - USS Kanawa (Wreck) offers some of Iron Bottom Sound's richest wreck diving. Water ranges 29-31°C, warmest January, April, December.

Best timeJul–Oct

WetsuitA 3mm shorty or thin full wetsuit

Marine lifeBarracuda, Blacktip Reef Sharks, Grey Reef Sharks, Humpback Whales and Orcas · 391+ species recorded

Water29-31°C · warmest January, April, December

CharacterWreck dive · max 15-30m

StandoutExceptional marine biodiversity

The USS Kanawa is one of Iron Bottom Sound’s most compelling wrecks. She’s a big girl, 476 feet long, sitting upright on the sandy bottom, and while the stern drops beyond recreational limits, the bow at 40m is where we spend most of our time. It’s a proper historical dive, the kind where you can almost hear the echoes of 1943. We love exploring her huge cargo holds, now home to enormous schools of batfish so dense they’re like moving walls, and the occasional Humpback grouper. Currents here can be mild, but always check conditions; it makes a big difference to how much of the deck you can comfortably explore. Visibility averages around 12m, which is decent enough for the scale of the wreck, but sometimes you get those magical days where the light pierces deeper. Our favourite part is the bridge section, where you’ll often find dartfish hovering over the corals growing on the metalwork, alongside inquisitive Half-grey wrasse. This site is definitely one for experienced wreck divers who appreciate the solemn beauty of history underwater.