wreck

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VALLEY FORGE

The Valley Forge, off Singapore’s Southern Islands, is our pick for a proper wreck dive in these waters. It’s a steamship, sunk in 1959 with a cargo of wheat, and it sits upright at 20 metres. We love that it’s still relatively intact, offering a tangible sense of its past. You can trace the outline of its hull, seeing how the current has shaped the growth on its steel plates over the decades. Dropping down, the first thing you notice is the sheer scale, the bow rising like a dark wall from the silty seabed. Schools of fusiliers often swirl around the superstructure, a silver curtain against the darker metal. Look closely at the deck plating and you’ll find nudibranchs, often the colourful *Chromodoris magnifica*, clinging to the hydroids. Inside the deeper sections of the holds, if conditions allow penetration, it gets seriously dark, the only light filtering in from distant gaps, and you might spot a large grouper lurking. Visibility here can be tricky, often 5-8 metres, but on a good day, when the tide is just right and the silty bottom hasn't been stirred, it can push to 10-12, making the wreck feel immense. It's a dive for those who appreciate history and don't mind a bit of a challenge, definitely not one for absolute beginners.