BRITA DAN - Baltic Coast
The Brita Dan sits on her side, mostly intact, an impressive skeleton of a motor vessel sunk way back in '65. We love how accessible she is, resting in just 10 metres of water, making her a perfect long dive for newer wreck divers or a leisurely exploration for those with more experience. You can spend a good hour tracing her length, from the stern, where the prop is often silhouetted against the ambient light, right up to the bow that points towards the shore. Inside, the engine room is fairly open, filled with light filtering through the hatches, and it’s always interesting to poke around the superstructure, imagining the crew's final moments. We’ve found wolfish tucked into crevices here, and often seen schools of cod milling about the deck. The visibility can vary, as with most Baltic sites, but on a good day, the sheer scale of her really comes into its own. Our advice? Go on a weekday morning to beat any local boat traffic and catch the best light.
- Location
- Baltic Coast, Sweden, Mediterranean & Europe
- Coordinates
- 61.111280, 21.261301
- Type
- wreck
- Maximum Depth
- 10m
Wreck History - BRITA DAN
- Year Sunk
- 1964
- Vessel Type
- cargo ship
- Cause
- grounding
The BRITA DAN was a substantial motor vessel, measuring nearly 100 meters in length. In November 1964, her journey came to a sudden and violent end when she was driven hard aground onto a series of submerged rocks along the Swedish Baltic coast. The immense force of the impact tore the ship's hull apart, and she quickly succumbed, sinking into the shallow waters where she struck.
Today, the BRITA DAN lies at a maximum depth of just 10 meters, making her an exciting and easily accessible dive. The wreck is heavily broken up from the grounding and subsequent years in the harsh Baltic environment, earning it a 'Dangerous Wreck' classification due to the twisted metal and potential for entanglement. For the cautious diver, this creates a fascinating underwater landscape to explore. The scattered sections of the massive hull form a sprawling artificial reef, providing shelter for a variety of marine life. It's a great dive for novices and experienced divers alike, offering a dramatic example of a ship's battle with the unforgiving coastline.
Best Time to Dive in Baltic Coast
The warmest water temperatures in Baltic Coast occur in January, averaging 0.6°C. The coolest conditions are in December at 0.6°C.
Monthly Water Temperatures
- January: 0.6°C (air: -0.4°C)
- February: 0.6°C (air: -0.3°C)
- March: 0.6°C (air: 1.7°C)
- April: 0.6°C (air: 4.6°C)
- May: 0.6°C (air: 10.5°C)
- June: 0.6°C (air: 17.2°C)
- July: 0.6°C (air: 17.8°C)
- August: 0.6°C (air: 17.3°C)
- September: 0.6°C (air: 13.2°C)
- October: 0.6°C (air: 8.5°C)
- November: 0.6°C (air: 3.8°C)
- December: 0.6°C (air: -0.5°C)
Nearby Dive Sites in Baltic Coast
- AID - 30m (wreck)
- Akula - 30m (wreck)
- Alfred - 12m (wreck)
- Altair - 25m (wreck)
- ANNA - 42m (wreck)
- Astrahan - 4m (wreck)
- Äventyrsgruvan
- BEATRIS - 31m (wreck)
- Belliver - 29m
- Björkviks brygga
- Caskelot/Nederland - 24m (wreck)
- DONNA - 20m (wreck)
- DORIS H - 11m (wreck)
- Dykhuset
- Eevi - 10m (wreck)
Nearest Dive Centres to BRITA DAN
- Dykhuset AB
- Ecodive - PADI
- Seawolf Sukelluskeskus Oy - ["PADI"]
- Stockholms Dykcenter - SSI
- Turun Sukelluskeskus - SSI
- Västerorts Dyk & Kompressorer AB
Marine Life in Baltic Coast
Home to 59 recorded species including 31 reef fish, 9 seagrass & algae, 5 sea snails & nudibranchs, 4 other, 3 whales & dolphins, 3 sharks & rays.
Notable Species
- Blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) - Clams & Mussels
- Protestant (Clupea harengus) - Reef Fish
- bladder wrack (Fucus vesiculosus) - Seagrass & Algae
- New Zealand Mudsnail (Potamopyrgus antipodarum) - Sea Snails & Nudibranchs
- Fluke (Platichthys flesus) - Reef Fish
- Ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernua) - Reef Fish
- Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) - Reef Fish
- sprat (Sprattus sprattus) - Reef Fish
- bull rout (Myoxocephalus scorpius) - Reef Fish
- Sea gooseberry (Pleurobrachia pileus)
- pike (Esox lucius) - Reef Fish
- common jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) - Jellyfish
- Spawn (Gasterosteus aculeatus) - Reef Fish
- burbot (Lota lota) - Reef Fish
- Sea Trout (Salmo trutta) - Reef Fish
- black goby (Gobius niger) - Reef Fish
- salmon (Salmo salar) - Reef Fish
- lumpsucker (Cyclopterus lumpus) - Reef Fish
- eel (Anguilla anguilla) - Reef Fish
- eelgrass (Zostera marina) - Seagrass & Algae
Recommended Packing List for BRITA DAN
Based on average water temperature of 0.6°C.
- Drysuit - water at 1°C demands a drysuit with thermal undergarments
- Hood & Gloves (7mm+) - critical to prevent heat loss
- Mask - essential for every dive
- Fins
- BCD - buoyancy compensator
- Regulator - your most safety-critical piece of gear
- Dive Computer - tracks depth, time, and NDL
- Surface Marker Buoy (SMB) - essential for boat pickups
- Dive Torch - useful for crevices and colour at depth
- Underwater Camera - capture your diving memories