Amelia C

Meet the site

The Amelia C was a working prawn trawler of about 25 m from the Northern Prawn Fishery. After decommissioning she was stripped, cleaned and made ready for sinking by Darwin Sub Aqua Club members – removing fuel, oils, loose fittings and hazards – and scuttled at Fenton Patches in 2013 as part of the NT artificial reef program. She went down the same year as the Merindah Pearl, and the two hulls, together with the older Antares and its steel barge, form the densest cluster of wrecks in the Fenton field.

The trawler landed upright on sand at about 25–28 m. Her profile is classic Top End prawner: a high flared bow, a long working deck with fish-hold hatches, and the wheelhouse and trawl gantry aft. Because she was cleaned specifically for divers, the hull is relatively open, but the holds have since accumulated silt and should be viewed from the hatch rather than entered. Marine growth after a decade is well established – sponges, soft corals, whip corals, hydroids and oysters coat the rails and gantry – and the hull has become a home for resident fish.

Fish life is what brings divers here. Golden snapper and saddletail snapper school in the lee of the hull, black jewfish and estuary cod occupy the holds and the space beneath the stern, and trevally, queenfish and Spanish mackerel pass through on the moving tide. Batfish often escort divers on the ascent.

DSAC's account records the Amelia C's port bow resting against the Antares' starboard bow; the NT Government reef list gives her a position shared with the Merindah Pearl, about 100 m from the Antares. Either way, on a clear neap-tide day several wrecks can be combined in one or two dives. The site suits advanced divers comfortable with open-water descents, 25 m-plus depths and a tight slack-water window. It is a good example of how volunteer preparation has made Darwin's offshore artificial reefs accessible to recreational divers rather than just anglers.

What you might see

Golden snapper, saddletail snapper, black jewfish, estuary cod, queenfish, trevally, Spanish mackerel, batfish, fusiliers, sponges, soft and whip corals

Location

Ex-prawn trawler scuttled in 2013 at Fenton Patches beside the Merindah Pearl and close to the Antares (NT Government position 12°09.810'S 130°41.409'E).

Facilities nearby

Departure facilities at Cullen Bay Marina (fuel, ramp, toilets, cafes) and Dinah Beach; air fills in Darwin only.