Abu Nuhas Ship Graveyard is only an hour away by boat from El Gouna. Diving on this site is a historically fascinating experience since this submerged reef caused the sinking of no less than 5 ships. The reef has thus been called "Sha'ab Abu Nuhas", meaning "father of bad luck reef" since it was considered as a sailor's nightmare.
Four of the sunken ships can be explored by divers: the Giannis D (Greek Japan-built cargo, sunk in 1983), the Carnatic (British cargo and mail ship), The Chrisoula K (Greek freighter, sunk in 1981), The Kimon M (German cargo, sunk in 1978).
The oldest, the British built Carnatic, is also one of the oldest dive shipwrecks in the Red Sea. It hit the reef in 1869, laden with gold, wine and cotton on its way to India. The cargo ship initially balanced on top of the reef but after 36 hours it broke down in two pieces which sunk parallel to the reef at 24 m.
Today, the 90 m long wreck lies underwater in a remarkably good condition. Its wooden flooring having rotted away, you’ll get a feeling of being inside the skeleton of some gigantic prehistoric whale. You can dive the entire length of the ship, with sweepers, glassfish, nudibranchs and a few batfish keeping you company.
Dive Site: Sha'ab Abu Nuhas
Location: 27°34'50"N; 33°55'30"E
Description: Reef with five wrecks on it
Depth: 89 meters max (292 feet), mostly around 24 meters (79 feet)
Visibility: 20 - 30 meters (65 - 100 feet)