WILLIAM MARTIN

Good diving all year

Protected Area

Baile Mhac Óda

Why dive here

With 185+ marine species recorded in the area - including blue sharks, dolphins, dwarf minke whales, humpback whales and ocean sunfish (mola mola) - WILLIAM MARTIN offers some of South Coast's richest wreck diving. Water ranges 9-15°C, warmest July, August, September.

Best timeYear-round

WetsuitA drysuit

Marine lifeBlue Sharks, Dolphins, Dwarf Minke Whales, Humpback Whales and Ocean Sunfish (Mola Mola) · 185+ species recorded

Water9-15°C · warmest July, August, September

CharacterWreck dive · max 59m

StandoutExceptional marine biodiversity

The William Martin is one of those wrecks we keep coming back to. Lying at 59 metres, she’s a deep dive and definitely one for experienced technical divers, but what a reward. This sailing vessel, torpedoed by a German U-boat in 1917, is surprisingly intact for her age and depth. We love tracing the lines of her hull, imagining her final moments, and feeling that palpable sense of history down there. What really gets us about the William Martin, though, isn't just the history. It's how life has reclaimed her. The deck is a riot of jewel anemones, vivid orange and pink against the aged timber. Look closely and you’ll spot conger eels peering from dark recesses, their thick bodies coiled within the broken plating. Ling often hang around the stern, massive and curious, while smaller wrasse flit through the rigging. Visibility can be a bit hit or miss on the South Coast, but when it’s good, the sheer scale of the wreck, silhouetted against the filtered light, is genuinely humbling. Our best dives here have always been on a slack tide, giving us plenty of time to really soak it all in.