Meet the site
The Dee Why is the largest and best known of the vessels scuttled to create the Long Reef artificial reef, and for three decades it has been the benchmark deep wreck for Sydney technical divers. Built by Napier and Miller at Glasgow and launched on 27 February 1928, she was a 67 m (220 ft), 799-ton double-ended steam ferry with a triple-expansion engine and twin screws, licensed to carry 2,000 passengers on the Circular Quay to Manly run. She worked the harbour for forty years until withdrawn in July 1968. Stripped of her superstructure and engine, she was towed out and her sea-cocks opened on 25 May 1976; she went down in about 45 minutes and settled upright on the sand 4.25 km off Narrabeen with her bow to the east. Today the hull sits in 48 m with the highest remaining structure at about 43 m. The wooden main and promenade decks have gone, so the ferry now reads as a long open steel trough: the ribs and side plating stand, the bow end has folded to port, and the interior is dominated by four enormous boilers that survived the stripping. Divers swim between and over the boilers and follow the propeller shaft tunnel, which is visible inside and outside the hull. Toilets at the eastern end, hold spaces and the remains of the double-ended steering gear are the other landmarks. Compared with photographs from the 1990s the wreck has slumped considerably, probably from anchors dragging through the structure, and the once-clean lines are now a maze of bent frames, so orientation on a poor-visibility day is harder than the size of the wreck suggests. Fish life is good rather than spectacular: schools of nannygai and bullseyes in the shadows, kingfish over the top, Port Jackson sharks in winter and the occasional jewfish. Bronze and dusky whalers are regularly seen on the decompression stops and are the reason most divers hang in a group. The Meggol lies about 20 m off the starboard side near the bow, and the Coolooli, Himma and the barges are all within a few hundred metres, so a well-equipped team can visit two wrecks in one deco dive. This is a dive for trained decompression divers with cold-water experience. It matters locally because it is the most intact large wreck close to Sydney at a depth that is reachable on a single-stage trimix plan, and because it is the anchor of the only designated artificial reef ground on the northern coast.
What you might see
Nannygai, bullseyes, yellowtail kingfish, Port Jackson sharks (winter), jewfish, dusky/bronze whaler sharks on the ascent, sergeant baker, wobbegongs, jewel anemones and sponges on the frames
Location
Former Manly ferry scuttled in 1976 on the sand plain 4.25 km off Narrabeen Beach, the centrepiece of the Long Reef artificial reef area; upright in 48 m.
Facilities nearby
Departure ramps at Roseville Bridge (Middle Harbour) and Rose Bay have toilets and parking; nothing at the site.
Before you make plans
Conditions, access and operator schedules can change. This is a location guide, not a dive plan. Ask a local operator about current conditions and suitability for your training and experience.
Sources & further reading
michaelmcfadyenscuba.infomichaelmcfadyenscuba.infosydneydivecharters.com.auRecord updated 26 Sept 2026. Source claims are being reviewed.