Wreck of the RMS Rhone

The RMS Rhone was a Royal Mail steamer caught off Salt Island by the hurricane of October 1867; she was driven onto the rocks, broke in two and sank with the loss of well over a hundred lives. She lies in two sections, the bow in around twenty-four metres largely intact enough to swim through and the stern in shallower water with the propeller and gearbox exposed. It is a national park and generally regarded as the finest wreck dive in the Caribbean.

The landscape

• The bow section - the largely intact forward hull in around twenty-four metres.
• The stern section - the propeller and gearbox in shallower water.
• The swim-throughs - the openings in the bow that can be entered.
• The 1867 hurricane - the storm that drove her onto the rocks.

When to go

December to May is the calmest and clearest for diving. Hurricane season runs June to November. The shallow stern can be snorkelled in calm conditions.

Practical notes

It is a boat dive and conditions govern access. Currents can run over the site. Removing anything is prohibited; it is a national park and a grave.

Nearby

Salt Island is above it, and Cooper Island is north.