DIEPPE FECAMP COURSEULLES Port en Bessin ST VAAST LA HOGUE CHERBOURGH
Port en Bessin is a small fishing village situated to the south west of the Bay de Seine in between the landing beaches of Gold & Omaha & the famous cliffs of Pointe Du Hoc where the American Rangers went ashore to destroy the gun batteries and took a battering themselves. The harbour is mainly a fishing port with a large fleet of French fishing trawlers operating from it, they go out daily and returning the same day to land their catch of fresh fish to the market.
There is no real marina here you just lay along the town quay in amongst the other visiting boats and trawlers. If it all gets too busy we rack up along side each other and climb accross the boats and up onto the quayside. The town is quite small with the main area being around the port, there are bars, restaurants & shops along the quayside with the theme very much about the sea & sea food although other quisine is available in all restaurants.
There are several hotels in the town ranging from the Hotel Ibis. the Kings Hotel. and the Hotel De La Marine. There are other hotels available & a Camp Site in the surrounding area but one to check out is The Hotel Mercure. with its heated swimming pools, fitness centre & golf course. There is also Portland Camping.
The reason we enjoy operating from Port en Bessin is that the harbour location offers us great access to the middle & western areas to the Seine Bay. It is quite a tidal affected harbour with access only available 2hrs either side of High Water so timmings are paramount especially if the second dive of the day is the High Water slack as we need to get back to harbour before the lock gates are closed.
Just a 15 minute walk from the Port is the shipwreck museum of Port en Bessin, It is situated on the outskirts of town in a large open area easily identified from a distance by the Alied flags flying from the large cranes. This museum is well worth a visit as it has taken the past 60+ years of clearing the obstructions in the Bay to make it safe for shipping and diving in the area, this has allowed the museum owner the opertunity to collect and preserve the artifacts that you now see in his museum.
Sherman Bulldozer M5A1 Stuart M7 Priest
Here you can see the remains of war, there are tanks, armoured vehicles, big guns, landing crafts, deck guns from submarines and one of the few Valentine amphibious tanks that failed on the 6th June 1944. Inside the museum there are artefacts from the many ships that met their end in 1944 and these include the ships bells from HMS Quorn & HMS Isis, there are also the ships naval crests on display and Steering Helms, Telegraphs & Compass Binaccles. You can see munitions & shell cases of all caliber and personnal objects. There is also a video show that can be watched showing the salvage over the years.
Middle & Western Bay Wrecks
Susan B Anthony - This American troop ship was almost 500ft long and had a beam of 33ft she was Built in 1930 at Camden, New Jersey and weighed in at 8183 tons. She saw service in North Africa, Sicily and then as a transport ship between the United States & the UK ferrying troops and supplies in preperation for the big push into Europe and Operation Overlord.
In the early hours off the 7th June 1944 Susan B Anthony was approaching Omaha Beach, It was 08.20am when she struck the mine under No4 hold, the ship began to list almost immediately and fire broke out and spread in the engine & fire rooms. The ship settled quickly and on an even keel some 8 miles north of port en Bessin in only 30mtrs of water. Being such a large ship she rested on the bottom with her decks above water allowing landing crafts to come alongside and evacuate the crew & troops to land.
Today the wreck of the Susan B rests in 30mtrs of water with her bow laying on its port side with large deck guns still in place, the main body of the ship is upright and the stern is pretty broken up and like a scrap yard. There are some amazing swim throughs on this wreck but great care must be taken, this is a fabulous dive with big guns anti- aircraft guns and ammunitions spread around. Sea life is good with the usual fish and plenty of lobsters, crabs & scallops throughout the wreckage.
HMS Empire Broadsword- is another great wreck, she stands an impressive 15mtrs off the seabed and lays on her starboard side.
On the 2nd July almost a month after D-Day the Broadsword was again back at Omaha beach landing troops and equipment when she struck 2 mines, the explosions lifted the ship and broke her back and she settled on the seabed very quickly in only 25mtrs water.
The wreck lies east/west and on her stbd side, she is broken just aft of the engine room & it is possible to access the engine & boiler rooms although great care must be taken as the years of strong tides, gales and shallow depth has weakend the structure.
From stern to bow there is much to see and explore, a massive rudder starts you off but no prop, this has been salvaged. A Large 4" deck gun dominates the stern, pointing skywards as if ready to fire with lots of ammo scattered around. You pass the engine room area and come accross the bridge area, still large and pretty together giving great access & penetration just be careful. On the fore deck again there are more guns, big 4-inch and the smaller anti-aircraft guns and yes more munitions. This is a great dive in a really good depth.
HMS Landing Ship Tank 523 - There are plenty off landing crafts littering the Bay de Seine and probably the most impressive is the LST523 with its cargo of sherman tanks tipped out onto the seabed like a spilt toybox. She also struck a mine and sank swiftly in only 30mtrs of water to the seabed; the stern section is upside down with 2 bare prop shafts and 2 rudders in place however the 2 props have been easily salvaged. As you go forward the LST comes upright but quite broken. It is possible to access the stern area where boxes of shells lay in amongst the masses off fish lurking inside especially the big bass.
Landing Craft Rocket Landing Ship Tank
HMS Computator - This British armed trawler was lost on 21st January 1945 after being in collision with HMS Vanoc 24 miles to the north of Port en Bessin, she now rests in 36mtrs at Low water. The actual wreck is sitting upright and very intact and is a superb dive.
HMS Minster - On 8th June 1944 HMS Minster struck a mine off Utah Beach and sank swiftly A former cargo ship built in 1924 for the Southern Railway Co Ltd, she was hired by the RN as a net layer in 1940. Today the wreck off the Minster lies close to the wreck off the USS Meredith and in 20mtrs.
HMHS Amsterdam - Built in the 1930's she started life as a passenger ferry on the Harwich to Hook of Holland route. At the outbreak of the war she was converted to a troop ship and was based on the south coast at Southampton, the Amsterdam treveled to the Shetlands & Orkney Isles transporting troops between the Islands and the main land before returning back down south to be used as a troop ship for Operation Overlord.
On 5th June 1944 the Amsterdam sailed from Weymouth with the American 2nd US Rangers on route for Normandie and their fated assault on Point De Hoc to silence the big guns on top of the cliffs, this proved to be a bloody battle with many casualties.
The Amsterdam then returned back to her home on the Clyde where she was built in 1930 to be converted to a hospital ship and become HMHS Amsterdam, On the 7th August in thick fog she was off Juno Beach carrying wounded and prisoners of war back to the UK when in the early hours she struck 2 mines, virtually all the passengers and crew were transferred to other ships before HMHS Amsterdam sank in 25mtrs of water 5 miles to the north from Arromanche.
This 350ft wreck lays east/west and on her port side, she is quite broken and spread over an area yet still quite recognizable, The bow & stern of the ship area prominent with the superstructure collapsed down and scattered in big chunks the engine room & the hold areas are accessible.
USS Meredith - On 6th June 1944 the American destroyer USS Meredith gave gunfire support to the landing forces on Utah Beach and early in the morning of the following day. whilst she was patrolling the offshore waters as a screening vessel she struck an enemy mine and was severely damaged, the result of the explosion was the loss of seven killed and over 50 wounded and missing, The USS Meredith was towed to an anchorage in the Bay de Seine to be salvaged. However, on the morning of 9 June, her seams were further opened by an enemy bombing raid and shortly after she broke in two without warning and sank.
USS Tide - An American Auk class Minesweeper built in 1942 with armaments off 2 x 3" guns & 2 x 40mm and 2 x 20mm anti aircraft guns. Whilst carrying out sweeping duties off Utah & Omaha beaches on the 7th June the USS Tide struck a mine killing the ships commanding officer Lt Commander George Crane instantly, the explosion broke the ship back and whilst under tow by USS Swift she broke in two pieces and sank. Today the broken & scattered remains of USS Tide lie 3 miles nrth from Grandcamp Maisy in 15mtrs, a good rummage dive
SGB7 - Lost on the 19th June 1942 the wreck of Steam Gun Boat No7 rests in 32mtrs on a sand & shingle sea bed, the ship is very open and stands up about 4mtr high with her engine & boiler visible amongst the debris of boxes and live shells. Most of the structure has now collapsed down and covered by shingle but is still a very interesting dive. There is lots of life on this wreck and is very good for seeing crabs, lobsters & Plaice.
German Patrol Boat - A small distance from SGB7 is the remains of a German patrol boat, not much is known about this wreck or to her identity, but only that it is German due to the markings seen on the wreck. Lots to see & loads of fish in 30mtrs
Barsac - A French ship sunk in 1918 whilst carrying a cargo Nickel Ore by the German submarine UB80, she was on passage from Noumea to Le Havre on 11th January 1918.
This wreck is big standing 10mtrs high and intact albeit from the port stern area which took the torpedo. You can access the bridge and accommodation areas & up on top is a ships compass, stuck in place for all to see, Up on the bows is a deck gun with 3" shells laying around but one caution is the amount of trawl net draped over the front so be careful.
S.S. Norfolk - This big ship was built in Seattle Washington, USA in 1918 for the Norwegian government. She was 410ft long and had a beam of 54ft she spent most of her life transporting supplies through the Mediterranean before seeing action off the Normandy beaches where she struck a mine, after that it was decided to use the Norfolk as a blockship for the American Mulberry A off Omaha beach.
Today the wreck of SS Norfolk sits upright in only 20mtrs of water and stands some 6mtrs high in places, you can swim from Bow to Stern dropping into the 4 holds engine space and accommodation area. She rests on the side of a big sand bank that shifts covers and uncovers. The marine life onboard can be exceptional and is a favorite with local Bass fisherman
SS Brackenfield & SS Dungrange - These 2 ships were in a 20 ship convoy leaving from Southampton bound for Normandy when at 3.00am in the morning they came under attached from German E boats from the 2nd M.T.B. flotilla based at Boulogne. The ships were loaded with a volatile cargo of fuel & munitions and when attacked both ships sank in minutes. Today these ships rest in 42mtrs one lays at 45 degrees on her port side the other has her bows upside down and then twist back and opens up and accessible, because there 2 wrecks are 30miles offshore we only visit them on channel crossings or when the conditions allow but when we do the marine life is phenomenal with loads to see from crabs & lobsters to big fish Ling, Bass, Pollack & congers. We have lots of targets in this area still to be explored.
HMS Fratton - She was built in 1925 for the Southern Railway Co as a cross channel ferry to operate from Dover & Folkestone. The Fratton took part in the evacuation of the Channel Islands in 1942 and then as a general duties ship by the Royal Navy until 1944 when she was used as a control ship off Gold Beach during Operation Overlord.
On the 18th August 1944 HMS Fratton was once again off the Normandie coast this time being used as an examination vessel, In the early hours an explosion ripped through the Port stern section of the ship as she triggered an acoustic mine. The vessel began to sink almost immediately and the order to abandon ship was given, 38 of the ships crew were picked up by motor launches however 31 crew members lost their lives.
The wreck now lies in 20mtrs and stands about 5mtrs high, she is still reasonably intact with large areas still recognizable, lots of fish and marine life especially big Bass.
Mulberry units & Bridge Sections - There is always the danger when diving new marks that you might end up diving a large lump of square concrete or a some barges or even some bridge sections but for me its the excitement of the new undived wreck even if it does turn out to be something without an engine because you need to view every wreck for what it is and the marine life on new wrecks can be phenomenal & i get to cross them off my list.
look don't touch.