wreck

Log This Dive

HMCS Mackenzie

The HMCS Mackenzie is one of our favourites in the Pacific Northwest, especially when the conditions line up. Dropping down, you’re immediately enveloped by the sheer scale of the ship. We love exploring the bridge area, where enormous lingcod often lurk in the shadows, unbothered by divers. The deck guns are still intact, draped in plumose anemones, their white tentacles waving gently in the surge. Look closely for giant pacific octopuses tucked into crevices in the superstructure; they’re masters of camouflage here. Penetration is possible for trained wreck divers, with plenty of swim-throughs to explore the interior spaces. The engine room is particularly atmospheric, a maze of pipes and gauges now serving as apartment blocks for rockfish. Visibility can be hit or miss, typical for the PNW, so we always aim for slack tide on an incoming current to catch it at its best. It’s a site that changes with every dive, always revealing a new corner or a different resident.