HMAS Brisbane

The HMAS Brisbane was a former missile destroyer, decommissioned and then sunk in 2005, coming to rest in about 28m of water off Mooloolaba, a glamorous suburb known for its beautiful beaches on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.  In June 2021, we decided to go check it out with Scuba World. 

The wreck lies just a short boat ride from the harbour - a lot of which can be spent admiring opulent and seemingly empty mansions that line the canals on the way out to the ocean.

Divers follow a rope down to the site, and are soon enveloped in clouds of baitfish, thousands of which whiz around the vessel and your face, especially while you are inside the wreck. 

As we swam over the upper deck, we came across several octopus (cannily concealed inside pipes), tuna, snapper and two extremely large potato cod. The balustrades of the HMAS Brisbane were covered in vibrant hard and soft corals, making for a very beautiful dive. But be careful not to touch - there are heaps of well-concealed scorpionfish! 

Inside the wreck, we inspected the control room, machine room and laundry. Torches are compulsory but even with a light, there were so many baitfish I could hardly even see.

On our return to the surface, we came across a shovel nose ray laid out on the sand, completely unperturbed by our presence. Then, back on the boat, we were inspected by a school of playful dolphins - an unexpected treat!