The Baltic Sea hides many treasures. The tragic history of World War II, which particularly affected our region, goes hand in hand with the multitude of war memorabilia lying at the bottom of the sea. There are over a hundred of them, although most of them remain available only to the "chosen ones", the divers.
The Maritime Office in Gdynia, in cooperation with the National Maritime Museum in Gdansk, has prepared a special offer for those who prefer to replace the museum with the depths of the sea. A list of wrecks officially available for underwater tourism has been created. And it has its supporters – every year over 6,000 divers go to the bottom of the Polish sea.
Back in 2006, this list included 20 wrecks available to underwater tourists. Currently it is twice as long. Expeditions are organized to 40 wrecks from the so-called a simplified procedure – based on “reporting leaving the port for scuba diving”. With the popularization of “alternative sightseeing”, experts also observe the growing concern of the diving community for cultural assets such as wrecks. That is why the Maritime Office in Gdynia is working on registering further objects. Also those sunk at shallow depths, already available to divers with basic qualifications.
Wreck diving in the Baltic Sea_photo Tomasz Stachura
To practice wreck diving, you need at least minimal qualifications. The first level is the so-called Open Water Diver. This is the official PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) degree, which allows you to dive up to 18m in open water.
At this depth, you can already find very interesting wrecks, for example the Russian submarine chaser, Grozny (11 m) or the Delfin – a former British Navy minesweeper, flying the flag of the Polish Navy since 1948, sunk in the 1950s (13 m). A week-long training to obtain this certificate.
To dive to approximately 30-40 m, you need the next level, Advanced Open Water Diver (PADI), also known as Deep Diver. – We are still talking about recreational diving, that is, it does not require decompression – says Krzysztof Wnorowski from the Tryton Diving Center in Gdansk. With such a certificate, we can dive into one of the most interesting objects in our sea. Located at 32m, Munin is a German warship converted from a fishing trawler.
The last level of initiation is the so-called trimix diving – below 40 m.
Along with the popularization of "alternative sightseeing", experts observe the growing concern of the diving community for cultural assets, such as wrecks, photo Tomasz Stachura/Santi
In the depths of history... or war wrecks at the bottom.
The most desirable objects are, of course, those sunk the deepest and requiring more experience. The Franken transporter (70m) is such a challenge. Commissioned in 1943, it was intended to supply cruisers with fuel, ammunition and food. Bombed in 1945.
There are also fascinating wrecks that are prohibited from diving. These include the MS Wilhelm Gustloff, the former flagship of the Nazi tourist organization KdF, incorporated into the Kriegsmarine, sunk in tragic circumstances.
For lovers of forgotten stories, there is one more attraction – this time on land. This is the Rzucewo Cultural Park near Puck. This place has been an important archaeological haven connected with the Polish Baltic Sea since the XIXth century. In 1894, traces of a prehistoric fishing settlement from the Late Stone Age were discovered here. In today’s Park you can see how the ancient inhabitants of the lands of the Puck Bay and the surrounding area lived, see real everyday objects and the reconstruction of settlements.
