HMSM K4 - Scottish East Coast & Borders
The HMSM K4 is a properly moody dive, exactly what we love about Scottish wreck diving. You’ll find her at 50 metres, a big, imposing K-class submarine that met her end in a collision back in 1918. We’ve spent hours on this one, tracing the length of her hull, imagining the chaos of that night. The sheer scale of K4 is what sticks with you; she’s over 100 metres long, and dropping onto the conning tower feels like landing on a small building. Visibility can be a proper Scottish mixed bag, but when it’s good, the structure just keeps going, disappearing into the gloom. Look out for the resident ling and conger eels that have made the internal spaces their home, their eyes glinting in your torch beam. She’s a wreck for experienced divers, no doubt, given the depth and potential for current, but for those who make the trip, it’s a tangible piece of naval history. Our favourite moments are pushing into the bow section, feeling the sheer volume of the wreck around you, and spotting the odd porthole still intact. It’s a dive that demands respect, and rewards it in spades.
- Location
- Scottish East Coast & Borders, United Kingdom, Mediterranean & Europe
- Coordinates
- 56.258550, -2.192217
- Type
- wreck
- Maximum Depth
- 50m
Marine Protected Area: Isle of May
Nearby Dive Sites in Scottish East Coast & Borders
- ABESSINIA - 2m (wreck)
- ACCLIVITY - 26m (wreck)
- ADAMS BECK (PROBABLY) - 52m (wreck)
- ADORATION (POSSIBLY) - 52m (wreck)
- AEPOS - 60m (wreck)
- ALASKAN - 43m (wreck)
- ALBANO - 49m (wreck)
- ALERT - 42m (wreck)
- ALEXANDER - 2m (wreck)
- AMSTERDAM - 38m (wreck)
- ANGELA - 18m (wreck)
- ANLABY - 20m (wreck)
- ANNETTE MARY - 15m (wreck)
- ANN MODROS - 36m (wreck)
- ANU - 7m (wreck)
Nearest Dive Centres to HMSM K4
- Aquanorth - ["PADI"]
- Aqua Purists
- Deep Blue Scuba - PADI
- Deep Sea World Aquarium - ["PADI"]
- Libertas Scuba Stirling
- Newcastle University Sub Aqua Society - ["PADI"]
Marine Life in Scottish East Coast & Borders
Home to 126 recorded species including 53 reef fish, 12 whales & dolphins, 10 seagrass & algae, 10 sharks & rays, 9 crabs & lobsters, 8 other.
Notable Species
- Protestant (Clupea harengus) - Reef Fish
- whiting (Merlangius merlangus) - Reef Fish
- dab (Limanda limanda) - Reef Fish
- Haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) - Reef Fish
- Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) - Reef Fish
- long rough dab (Hippoglossoides platessoides) - Reef Fish
- sprat (Sprattus sprattus) - Reef Fish
- Common sea star (Asterias rubens) - Starfish
- Cowfish (Tursiops truncatus) - Whales & Dolphins
- Edible periwinkle (Littorina littorea) - Sea Snails & Nudibranchs
- Acorn barnacle (Semibalanus balanoides)
- harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) - Whales & Dolphins
- Blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) - Clams & Mussels
- Common lobster (Homarus gammarus) - Crabs & Lobsters
- Beadlet anemone (Actinia equina) - Hard Corals
- bladder wrack (Fucus vesiculosus) - Seagrass & Algae
- Dog whelk (Nucella lapillus) - Sea Snails & Nudibranchs
- Common brittlestar (Ophiothrix fragilis)
- butterfish (Pholis gunnellus) - Reef Fish
- grey gurnard (Eutrigla gurnardus) - Reef Fish