HMS ASSURANCE - Scottish West Coast
The HMS Assurance isn't your typical pretty reef dive, but we love it for its raw, rugged character. This old tug, sunk in 1941, now lies sprawled across Bluick Rock in Loch Foyle, a testament to a rougher era. Diving here, you're not just seeing a wreck, you're feeling the bite of history, even if the chill of Scottish waters is a constant companion. What really makes the Assurance for us is how she’s been completely adopted by the local marine life. We've seen conger eels snaking through collapsed sections of the superstructure, their heads poking out from rusting plates. Expect a kaleidoscope of anenomes and dead man's fingers clinging to every surface, bright oranges and purples against the muted steel. Look out for the nudibranchs too; the cold water often brings out some stunning varieties. It’s a dive for those who appreciate the story beneath the waves, a bit of a challenge perhaps, but incredibly rewarding. She's broken up quite a bit, so you won't be penetrating huge sections, but there's plenty of interest in the debris field and the way the wreck has settled into the seabed.
- Location
- Scottish West Coast, United Kingdom, Mediterranean & Europe
- Coordinates
- 55.216667, -6.937500
- Type
- wreck
- Maximum Depth
- 0m
Marine Protected Area: Magilligan Point
Nearby Dive Sites in Scottish West Coast
- ACCORD - 9m (wreck)
- ADONO - 10m (wreck)
- ADROLIS - 5m (wreck)
- AGATE - 10m (wreck)
- AGIOS MINAS - 10m (wreck)
- AKKA - 28m (wreck)
- ALBIA - 10m (wreck)
- ALEXANDER - 10m (wreck)
- AMY JANE - 52m (wreck)
- AMY (POSSIBLY) - 38m (wreck)
- ANGELA - 5m (wreck)
- ANNIE JANE - 29m (wreck)
- ANNIE MC FADYEN - 7m (wreck)
- ANNIE MELLING - 54m (wreck)
- ANWOTH - 0m (wreck)
Nearest Dive Centres to HMS ASSURANCE
- Aquaholics - ["PADI"]
- C&C MARINE SERVICES
- Eagle Divers NI - ["PADI"]
- Field Studies Council Millport
- Freedive Northern Ireland
- Fyne Diving - ["PADI"]
Marine Life in Scottish West Coast
Home to 127 recorded species including 50 reef fish, 15 whales & dolphins, 10 seagrass & algae, 9 sharks & rays, 8 other, 7 crabs & lobsters.
Notable Species
- harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) - Whales & Dolphins
- Common minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) - Whales & Dolphins
- Common sea star (Asterias rubens) - Starfish
- Devonshire cup coral (Caryophyllia (Caryophyllia) smithii) - Hard Corals
- Cowfish (Tursiops truncatus) - Whales & Dolphins
- basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) - Sharks & Rays
- Common shore crab (Carcinus maenas) - Crabs & Lobsters
- Common brittlestar (Ophiothrix fragilis)
- Short-beaked Common Dolphin (Delphinus delphis) - Whales & Dolphins
- Acorn barnacle (Semibalanus balanoides)
- Light-bulb sea squirt (Clavelina lepadiformis)
- bladder wrack (Fucus vesiculosus) - Seagrass & Algae
- Blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) - Clams & Mussels
- Norway Lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) - Crabs & Lobsters
- Sand mason (Lanice conchilega) - Worms
- Dog whelk (Nucella lapillus) - Sea Snails & Nudibranchs
- knotted wrack (Ascophyllum nodosum) - Seagrass & Algae
- Edible periwinkle (Littorina littorea) - Sea Snails & Nudibranchs
- Star ascidian (Botryllus schlosseri)
- Common whelk (Buccinum undatum) - Sea Snails & Nudibranchs