Dive sites in Bermuda

The Hermes was a 50-metre steel-hulled freighter that was deliberately scuttled in 1985 to create an artificial reef. She sits perfectly upright on a sandy bottom with her deck at about 15 metres and her keel at 25 metres. The vessel was cleaned of hazardous materials before sinking and has been colonised by marine life over four decades, becoming one of Bermuda's most popular wreck dives.

Yes, the Hermes is one of the best wreck penetration dives in Bermuda for intermediate-level divers. The cargo holds are open and spacious, the engine room is accessible through large hatches, and corridors have clear exit routes. Light penetrates through numerous openings, and silting is minimal due to the sandy bottom. A torch is recommended but the wreck is navigable in ambient light during daytime dives.

The Montana and Constellation are historical shipwrecks lying in shallower water and are more heavily broken up. The Hermes is a modern steel vessel sitting upright and intact, making it better suited for wreck penetration and underwater photography. The Montana and Constellation wrecks offer more historical interest as accidental sinkings. Many divers do all three wrecks during a Bermuda visit.

Both wrecks sit in remarkably shallow water, between 10 and 15 metres depth. This makes them accessible to divers of all levels, including those on introductory dives. The shallow depth also means extended bottom times and plenty of natural light for photography. Some sections are even visible from the surface on calm days.

Author Peter Benchley dove on the Constellation wreck while visiting Bermuda and was inspired by its cargo of medicine bottles and amphorae. The wreck and the surrounding reef became the basis for his 1976 novel 'The Deep,' later adapted into a feature film. The real wreck, a wooden-hulled schooner that sank in 1943, still has remnants of its cargo scattered across the seabed.