Øygar
Location |
Ålesund |
Position |
62º 26´N 06° 08´E |
Depth |
20m |
Chart |
Q813 |
The Øygar was built in Bergen in 1908. A small vessel of around 130gt, she was used to carry passengers and cargo on local services for most of her life. During WW2 she was armed, and scored several hits on a German vessel during a battle near Vaksdal in April 1940. Later in the war the Germans used her as a guard boat. After the war she was used again as a local services boat. Later she was hired out for use as an accommodation vessel in connection with the building of oil platforms at Stavanger. She sank in March 1976 near Dale in Gannsfjord. The wreck was later raised and taken to Ålesund. In November 1983 she was deliberately sunk as an attraction for divers, in her current resting place in Hessafjord.
The wreck sits upright in 20m on a flat sandy bottom with excellent visibility. She is about 30m long with a 6m beam. The decking has gone but most of the superstructure remains. There are plenty of safe swim throughs. The propeller, rudder, and 8-cylinder engine are still in place, as are the portholes, though the glass has been removed. There is plenty of encrusting life on the wreck, and many fish on the wreck and the surrounding seabed.
