Bunyip

Wreck Dive | Boat access

Steam Driven Iron Dredge | Max Depth: 58 m (190 ft) — Graveyard

Bunyip Dredge | © Unknown

The Bunyip shipwreck lies in the Victorian Ships' Graveyard and makes for an interesting deep technical dive. Originally built as a dredge, the Bunyip was later converted to a coal hulk, and was being used as a lighter before she was scuttled.

Bass Strait Warning: Always keep an eye on sea conditions throughout any shore or boat dive in Bass Strait on Victoria's coastline. Please read the warnings on the web page diving-in-bass-strait before diving or snorkelling this site.

Bunyip Shipwreck History — Built in 1879

The Bunyip steam driven iron centre ladder dredge was built in 1879 by W. Simons & Co., in Refrew, Scotland and launched on the 24 January 1879. The overall length of the vessel was 160.5 ft (49 m), beam 28.3 ft (8.63 m) and draught 11.3 ft (3.44 m), 151.6 tons net and 316.8 tons net.

The official trial of her dredging and steaming capability was made on the Clyde on 11 February 1979. The Bunyip left the Clyde on 25 April 1879, under the command of Captain W Rodick, under its own power bound for Melbourne, but suffered a number of unfortunate breakdowns on the voyage with repair stops in Cadiz, Singapore, the Thursday Island, and Sydney. She arrived in Melbourne on 2 November 1979.

Owned by, and built for, the Melbourne Harbor Trust Commission, the Bunyip worked as a dredge in Port Phillip and the Gippsland Lakes. The bucket ladder was 78 ft (24 m) in length, and worked through a central opening or well running half the length of the vessel. The after end of the ladder was stationary, and was upheld by large iron pillar. The fore end of the ladder could be raised or lowered by a large chain purchase There were 33 buckets, and each could lilt 6 cwt of mud or silt at a time, and the ladder could work to a cleared depth of 27 ft (8.23 m). The discharge could be made over either side of the hull, and the total quantity which could be raised was 280 tons per hour.

The Bunyip was propelled by twin screws, and her engines, which were on the compound principle, with surface condensing apparatus, were of 65 horse power nominal. The cylinders were inverted, and diameters were 38 in and 22 in respectively, with a 27 in stroke. The boilers were tubular, and 10 ft by 12 ft, with 50 square feet of fire grate surface, and a working pressure of 60 lb. There was a separate driving engine for the winches.

Five laid up steam hopper barges tied up at "Rotten Row", officially known as Spotswood Wharf, were offered for sale by the Melbourne Harbour Trust on Tuesday, 27 November 1934 — Burke, Wills, Batman, Fawkner and H.C. Piggot. The coal hulk Bunyip was also offered for sale. The Bunyip was purchased and converted into a lighter.

On 20 November 1954, while loaded with wool alongside the SS Adelaide Star, the Bunyip snapped its moorings in a fierce storm and blew ashore onto the sea wall east of Princes Pier, breaking its back. The Bunyip was refloated.

Bunyip Sinking — Scuttled 13 April 1955

The Bunyip was towed to the Victorian Ships' Graveyard by the tug Swiftness and scuttled on 13 April 1955 using explosives.

Heritage Warning: Any shipwreck or shipwreck relic that is 75 years or older is protected by legislation. Other items of maritime heritage 75 years or older are also protected by legislation. Activities such as digging for bottles, coins or other artefacts that involve the disturbance of archaeological sites may be in breach of the legislation, and penalties may apply. The legislation requires the mandatory reporting to Heritage Victoria as soon as practicable of any archaeological site that is identified. See Maritime heritage. Anyone with information about looting or stolen artefacts should call Heritage Victoria on (03) 7022 6390, or send an email to heritage.victoria@delwp.vic.gov.au.

Traditional Owners — This dive site does not lie in the acknowledged traditional Country of any first peoples of Australia.

Bunyip Location Map

Latitude: 38° 22.305′ S (38.371758° S / 38° 22′ 18.33″ S)
Longitude: 144° 25.563′ E (144.426057° E / 144° 25′ 33.81″ E)
Datum: WGS84 | Google Map
Added: 2012-07-22 09:00:00 GMT, Last updated: 2022-05-04 14:46:11 GMT
Source: Book - Victoria's Ships' Graveyard GPS (verified)
Nearest Neighbour: D McLennan, 716 m, bearing 58°, ENE
Steam Driven Iron Dredge, 317 ton.
Built: Renfrew, Scotland, 1879.
Scuttled: 13 April 1955.
Victorian Ships' Graveyard, Bass Strait.
Depth: 58 m.

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DISCLAIMER: No claim is made by The Scuba Doctor as to the accuracy of the dive site coordinates listed here. Should anyone decide to use these GPS marks to locate and dive on a site, they do so entirely at their own risk. Always verify against other sources.

The marks come from numerous sources including commercial operators, independent dive clubs, reference works, and active divers. Some are known to be accurate, while others may not be. Some GPS marks may even have come from maps using the AGD66 datum, and thus may need be converted to the WGS84 datum. To distinguish between the possible accuracy of the dive site marks, we've tried to give each mark a source of GPS, Google Earth, or unknown.