Wreck Wreck

S.S. Upas

Portavogie

Average score: 0

Weather Forecast Tide times Sea Temperature
Site name: S.S. Upas
Location: Descriptive location referring to nearest landfall i.e. town, village, harbour or island
Portavogie
Type: Describes whether this dive site can be dived from the shore, from a boat, or both
Boat
Wreck: Dive sites which include a shipwreck (or part of a shipwreck) are labelled with a ‘Yes’
Yes
Min. dive depth (m): The approximate minimum depth of the dive given in metres
Max. dive depth (m): The approximate maximum depth of the dive given in metres
17

Max. seabed depth (m): The maximum depth of the seabed at the site taken from the intersect between the dive site point and the depth contour on an Admiralty Standard Nautical Chart
17

Diving experience (min level): The recommended minimum level of diving experience for a specific site, described as Novice (<50 dives in temperate/cold waters and minimum certification of PADI Open/Advanced Open Water, BSAC Ocean Diver or CMAS 1 star), Intermediate (50-100 dives in temperate/cold waters and minimum certification of PADI Rescue Dive, BSAC Sports Dive or CMAS 2 star) or Advanced (>250 dives in temperate/cold waters and minimum certification of PADI Divemaster, BSAC Dive Leader or CMAS 3 star
Advanced

Optimal wind direction: The general wind direction which causes minimal exposure at the site, corresponding to 8 points of the compass: North (N), North East (NE), East (E, South East (SE), South (S), South West (SW), West, North West (NW)
SW/W/NW

Exposure: The approximate level of exposure to wind and wave action at the site on any given day, described as Sheltered (inshore sites surrounded by a form of shelter on all sides), Moderate (sites which are partially sheltered) or Exposed (sites with little to no shelter)
Exposed

Tidal strength: Anecdotal description of tidal strength at the site

Marine Protected Area: A Yes or No highlighting whether or not the site occurs within a Marine Protected Area
Yes

Visibility: Anecdotal description of the typical underwater visibility at the site
Visibility ranges from 5-10 metres.
Best time to dive: Anecdotal recommendation for the best time to dive the site for optimal underwater conditions. This typically relates to the stage of the tide
Slack Water
Getting there: Directions for getting to the site

By boat from Portavogie, Portaferry, Strangford or Bangor. The site is approximately 2km to the North East of Portavogie harbour entrance. Portavogie is a busy fishing port and therefore divers are instructed to depart from Strangford/Portaferry/Bangor if possible.

Facilities: Details of nearest facilities to dive site i.e. public car parking and toilets, slipways etc

Free car parking is available around Portavogie Harbour. The nearest public toilets are situated at Anchor Car Park (a ten minute walk or 3 minute drive from the harbour). There is a slipway at Portavogie harbour: contact the harbour master for guidance and berthing availability (028 9188 2377).

Free car parking, public toilets and slipways  are available at Portaferry, Strangford and Bangor.

Nearest tank filling is DV Diving, Mount Stewart, Newtownards.

Hazards: Anecdotal information on possible hazards at the site for divers and snorkellers

Description: A general description of the physical features of the dive site

The wreck lies upright but is broken up.

History: The history of the wreck provided by the Senior Marine Archaeologist from the Department for Communities Historic Environment Division (only included for wreck sites)

Date of loss 18/03/1915. A 470 gross ton merchant cargo ship built in 1913 at Paisley. En route from Ayr to Warrenpoint with a cargo of coal. Six men were lost. (Sources: Larn & Larn 2002).

Information derived from Historic Environment Record of Northern Ireland (HERoNI), Department for Communities, Historic Environment Division.

Biodiversity: A description of the species composition at the site. Species of interest are highlighted. Follow the links for more information about the species on the NBN Atlas Northern Ireland website

Not yet described!

View all species records from this site

A link to the dive site location on the NBN Atlas Northern Ireland website, showing all species records from within a 1km boundary of the site centroid. Any new species records from the site submitted to Seasearch, iRecord, CEDaR Online Recording or iNaturalist will appear here
Local charters: A link to the website for the nearest Dive Centre to the site. A map of all dive centres is provided under ‘Go Diving’

DV Diving

Environmental and Historical Designations: A list of any environmental or historical designations attributed to the site, or overlapping it. Follow the link for more information

North Channel SAC

More information: Links to additional information found online for the dive site

Irish Wrecks Online

Safety: Safety tips

  • In an emergency call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.
  • Follow VHF radio Channel 16 (156.8 MHz), the international distress frequency. Send a distress alert followed by ‘MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY’ and ‘This is [boat name]’.
  • Find nearest defibrillator (AED) here.
  • Portavogie Habour Master: 028 9188 2377
Latitude, Longitude: The approximate XY coordinates for the dive site in Decimel Degrees (DD). These can be converted to DMS or DDM by following the link below
54.481, -5.416333
Open in Google Maps Convert coordinates to DDM/DMS
S.S. Upas

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