WESTERGATE

Best months: Jul–Sep

Protected Area

East of Start Point

Why dive here

With 176+ marine species recorded in the area - including blue sharks, dolphins, dwarf minke whales, humpback whales and ocean sunfish (mola mola) - WESTERGATE offers some of Cornwall & Devon's richest wreck diving. Water ranges 10-18°C, warmest July, August, September.

Best timeJul–Sep

WetsuitA 5mm wetsuit

Marine lifeBlue Sharks, Dolphins, Dwarf Minke Whales, Humpback Whales and Ocean Sunfish (Mola Mola) · 176+ species recorded

Water10-18°C · warmest July, August, September

CharacterWreck dive · max 51m

StandoutExceptional marine biodiversity

Westergate feels like stepping back in time. This isn’t a pretty, intact wreck. It’s a merchant cruiser from 1918, torpedoed in WWI, and it lies broken across the seabed at 51 metres, a stark reminder of its violent end. The sheer scale is what gets you. Hull plates are ripped open, cargo holds splayed out, and the whole site feels incredibly exposed to the deep. We’ve dived Westergate several times, and each time we find something new. The bow section is our favourite, with its dramatic twists of metal. You can often see conger eels tucked into crevices there, their thick bodies surprisingly camouflaged against the rust. Visibility can be hit or miss in these waters, but on a good day, with a strong lamp, the wreck looms out of the green, and you get a real sense of its history. This is a dive for experienced wreck enthusiasts, divers comfortable with depth and sometimes challenging conditions. It’s not about vibrant corals; it’s about the raw, haunting beauty of a wreck reclaimed by the sea.