Juan Fernandez Archipelago dive sites

SMS Dresden was a German light cruiser that played a significant role in World War I's naval campaign in the South Pacific. After the Battle of the Falkland Islands in December 1914, the Dresden evaded British pursuit for months before being cornered in Cumberland Bay at Robinson Crusoe Island in March 1915. Rather than surrender, the German crew scuttled the ship. The wreck now lies at various depths in Cumberland Bay.

Robinson Crusoe Island lies approximately 670 kilometres off the Chilean coast in the Juan Fernandez Archipelago. Access is by small aircraft from Santiago, with flights taking about two hours. The island has a tiny settlement of around 900 people at San Juan Bautista. Dive infrastructure is limited, and advance arrangements are essential. The remoteness is precisely what has preserved its extraordinary endemic marine life.

The Juan Fernandez Archipelago has one of the highest rates of marine endemism on the planet, with over 90 percent of some species groups found nowhere else. The Juan Fernandez fur seal was hunted to near extinction and was once thought to be extinct before a small colony was rediscovered. The Juan Fernandez lobster supports a small sustainable fishery and is found only in these waters.