Scuba Diving Destinations:

The Lermotov Wreck

Destination: Pacific Ocean, New Zealand, The Lermotov

The Lermotov is one of the largest wrecks of the entire world. It was a cruise liner which was sunken in the Marlborough Sounds in New Zealand at 1986. Since the moment it was sunken, the Mikhael Lermotov became a very famous wreck among divers from all points of the world.

This wreck's length is of 578 feet or 155 meters and it had space for 700 passengers. Its original name, Mikhael Lermotov was chosen after a Russian novelist and poet. At the time it was sunken, this cruise liner was the most important of its kind in Russia. It was sunken after the pilot tried to make it go through a narrow passage in which the ship was opened by the rocks and sunken within five hours. It had 740 people on board, and all of them but one could escape on time.

This wreck is very interesting due to the fact that it looks almost as when it was when it was sunken. It is a very impacting image for divers to observe since many small details can still be easily seen in it. Each one of the different spaces and areas of the cruise liner can be still easily differentiated and objects such as metal chairs can be still seen in it.

The Lermotov lies on its side at a depth of about 36 meters into the water, although some parts of it can be reached much more easily. The port bridge wing, for example, is only about 12 meters and therefore divers can reach this part of the wreck much more easily than others. It is a very interesting wreck which often attracts divers who have already seen an important amount of wrecks before to visit it.

Underwater visibility around The Lermotov is very variable since it can range from 15 to 60 feet depending on the weather. When weather is stormy or too rainy, underwater visibility is much lower than usual, but when weather conditions are good, visibility can be excellent. When visibility is at its good moments, divers can easily have a general picture of it becoming very impressed by its great size.





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