The Shipwreck Koi
Double Cove, Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand
Nine Dives, Essons Valley , Picton, Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand
03 573 7199 or 021 1146997
The Koi at Motueka on Easter sunday
The Koi, history and dive information
The Koi was built in Scotland in 1906, it was a twin screw steamer of 53 net register tons and shipped to New Zealand in sections, where she was assembled and launched the same year.
The ship measured 84'5" ( 25.6 meters ) long, Beam 16' ( 4.9 meters ) and Depth 6'4" ( 1.9 meters )
She was used as a passengers ferry in and around the Motueka area.
After the Koi was swamped at the entrance to Nelson Harbour in 1910 she was re-floated and lengthened by another 4 meters.
In 1930 she was eventually less glamorously converted to a coal hulk and as such sank at her moorings in Picton on the 10th of March 1940.
Yet again she was raised, towed across the Sound and sunk off the point between Torea Point and Double Cove on the 5th of May 1940.
The position of the wreck has thus always been known and is about 50 meters off the only sandy beach on the point between Torea Point and Double Cove.
She is lying in approx 12 meters of water on a mud and sandy bottom with some reefs nearby and a usual visibility generally of about 3-5 meters and occasionally stretching to 15 meters.
This is still a complete hull, still with its engines and propellers. With the wooden deck mainly rotted away it is possible to swim into the holds and engine room spaces without any great difficulty.
The tops of the engines can still be seen protruding through the silt and mud that fills some of the holds of the ship.
Even with poor visibility it is a fascinating wreck to swim around.
The iron of the hull is now thickly covered with decorator crabs, nudi-branchs, various other growths, weeds, shells, sea urchins and aquatic plants.
All the main portions of the hulk are readily recognizable, and it is straight forward to navigate the hull and deck area as a intact wreck dive.
Nothing of interest was taken off the ship as most of her fittings were removed when she was hulked. The bell was last heard off in an Auckland home belonging to Mrs. Koi Grace after whom the vessel was named.
However an interesting feature that remained is a nicely decorated porcelain toilet bowl near the port bow.
Plenty of scallops are to be found in the area around the wreck with depths fairly quickly going to the 20's and 30 meter mark. Nice reefs stretching into the Double cove Marine reserve.
The fish life on and near the wreck contains blue-cod, spotties, leatherjacket, triple fins, blennies, sea perch, bream and two shy resident conger eels.
With a bit of luck you can also spot sea-horses, octopus and sea-dragon, I have also been buzzed by dusky dolphins here.
A seal can usually be found on a rock or jetty nearby, and the area seems to be a jelly fish magnet, the jellies are not of the stingy variety.
It is usually a safe dive for open water level divers onwards, with a fixed mooring line, no strong currents present, and no nets or other particular hazards, only thing to watch for is reduced visibility due to over-enthusiastic finning.
Rated as a excellent dive, an easy wreck and full of a variety of abundant macro and inner sounds marine life, on the doorstep of Waikawa.
Near to the Koi is Double Cove Fish nursery, it is not allowed to catch fish here and therefore this area is teeming with life, especially Blue Cod some of get very large indeed. It is well worth it having a fish feeding session with good photographic possiblities against the reefy backdrop. A 12 meter or so sheltered dive ideal for novice divers.
The front mast, nudibranch and blennie on the koi
starfish , well hidden eel and sea perch on the koi
reef scarlet wrasse and spotty on the koi
Thanks for some of the pictures to Bas Thomas, photographer Dutch Dive Magazine "Duiken"
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