This is Egypt
Hurghada, El Gouna & the Gubal wrecksIntermediatewreck

SS Ulysses

Also known as Ulysses; Ulysses wreck; Gubal Seghir wreck

One of the oldest and most heavily coralised wrecks in the northern Red Sea - the hull is almost a reef in its own right

No detailed dive map yet

A close-up reef map of SS Ulysses will appear here when available.

One of the oldest and most heavily coralised wrecks in the northern Red Sea - the hull is almost a reef in its own right. Bow wreckage begins in 4-5 m, ideal for a long safety stop. Boilers, engine and a fine propeller at the deep end. Depth 4–28 m; liveaboard only; Often strong along the northern face of Gubal Seghir; usually dived as a drift down the reef face current. ship_type: Iron screw steamer, planked decks, cargo/passenger (Ocean Steam Ship Co. / Alfred Holt 'Blue Funnel' Line); builder: R. Egyptian Red Sea marine protected area; HEPCA-maintained mooring buoys, anchoring prohibited

Highlights

  • One of the oldest and most heavily coralised wrecks in the northern Red Sea - the hull is almost a reef in its own right
  • Bow wreckage begins in 4-5 m, ideal for a long safety stop
  • Boilers, engine and a fine propeller at the deep end
  • The iron deck skeleton lets you swim through the length of the ship with no risk of getting lost

Marine life

  • glassfish
  • moray eels
  • groupers
  • crocodilefish
  • seahorses reported
  • lionfish
  • dense soft coral and hard coral encrustation on the plating
  • dolphins in the area

Good to know

Best season
Year-round. Water 22-29 C; calmest seas and best visibility March-November, with the coolest water and strongest northerlies December-February.
Protected status
Egyptian Red Sea marine protected area; HEPCA-maintained mooring buoys, anchoring prohibited
Fees
No separate site fee published; environmental tax historically 3.5 LE/diver/day (Red Sea Governorate, 2001), collection suspended after January 2011 per HEPCA.
Wreck
ship_type: Iron screw steamer, planked decks, cargo/passenger (Ocean Steam Ship Co. / Alfred Holt 'Blue Funnel' Line); builder: R. & W. Hawthorn Leslie and Company, Hebburn-on-Tyne, England; year_built: Launched 8 November 1870; length_m: 95.1; beam_m: 10.2; tonnage: 1,989 GRT; date_sunk: Struck 16 August 1887; slipped off the reef and sank a few days later during salvage; cause: Ran onto the northern side of Gubal Seghir (Small Gubal) in the dark. Salvage attempts continued for three days until heavy seas worked the hull off the reef and she slid into deep water.; cargo: General merchandise for Penang and China, valued at about GBP 60,000; orientation: Lying on her port side on the northern face of the reef, bow shallow. Bow wreckage 4-5 m, midships 15-20 m, stern and propeller about 28 m.; wreck_depth_m: 4-28; penetration: Yes and straightforward - the wooden decks have rotted away leaving only the iron deck beams, so the interior is open and naturally lit with no entrapment risk.

More sites in Hurghada, El Gouna & the Gubal wrecks

Abu Hashish

Extensive reef on a flat sand plateau with a steep drop-off, at the southern edge of the Hurghada day-boat range

Abu Ramada Cave

Caves, overhangs and rock formations on the eastern side of Abu Ramada

Abu Ramada North

Gently sloping plateau off the northern tip of Abu Ramada island, dropping past 100 m

Abu Ramada South

Terraced plateau with a shallow wall off the southern tip of Abu Ramada island

Helwa Ya Baladi

Dalida