Andrea Doria
Built: 1951 Sunk: July 26, 1956
Depth: 260fsw Tonnage: 29,100
Dimensions: 697' x 90'
The Andrea Doria is a huge wreck, almost the size of a city block, laying on the bottom on her Stbd. side. It would be an impossible task to describe every thing you would see as you dive the wreck. I will give you a brief over view of diving the wreck. If you are interested in participating in a trip to the Doria, I suggest you start off by reading so you think you want to dive the Doria elsewhere on this site. ( hyper link to that page)

You jump off the boat loaded for bear, doubles pumped with Tri-mix, and stage bottles clanking. You feel immediate relief, as the water supports your weight.

When most divers think of the Doria they envision her as intact, like in the pictures. The Doria sunk intact in 1956. Since that time, it has deteriorated rapidly. In, past years divers would used a set of Doria deck plans, to locate areas of the wreck they want to dive. They could use the plans like a road map to navigate the wreck. Today, most of the superstructure has torn off, and lies in an extremely confusing pile on the bottom. There are many goodies in the wreckage, but locating them can be a challenge.

As you sink down the anchor line, the Trimix is cool on your throat. At about 150 Ft’ you start to make out the shadow of the wreck. At 190 - 195 you touch down on the port side of the hull. Dive boats always anchor on the high side so as not to become entangled in the wreckage. You head left towards the bow, with the torn decking on your right, and the hull side on your left. Depending on where you arrived on the wreck, it can be a long swim. as you near the bow, you will find a crack opening up, about 100 ‘ or so before the bow. at this point you drop over the side down the now vertical bow area. you will pass over intact wooden decking as well as machinery, and a bow winch. if you continue forward, you will come to the tip of the bow. At this point you can follow the bottom edge of the starboard bow down towards the bottom. at some point the wreck will disappear into the sand. a quick look at your depth gauge and OUCH 260' of water.

As you head back towards the stern, the bottom rises slightly. After a short while, you will encounter the twisted wreckage of what once was, the forward, upper decks. This is a great spot to hunt for artifacts. A lot of the stuff that was inside the wreck, is now scattered on the bottom. Some of the artifacts like windows, that were securely bolted to the ship, are now out in the open for the taking. This area of the wreck is also the most confusing, and easeiest to get lost in. check your time, gas supply and depth often. Once you have secured that goodie and sent it to the surface on a lift bag, be sure to tie it off. The currents out here are fierce. Many a lift bag has arrived at the surface safely, only to drift away into Doria never, never land.

You are now nearing the spot where you decended on the wreck. you put a shot of gas in your dry suit and head up. At 190 Ft., you pause to pick up your stage bottles, and gather your strength for the long Deco ahead. A typical dive on the Doria is 20 - 30 Min. , using Trimix, you have a 45 to 90 Min. hang ahead of you. Often, the most difficult part of a Doria dive is the hang. The current here can blow in several different directions at the same time, depending on your depth. You slowly make your way up the line, switching gasses and doing Pile stops along the way. As you reach the 40 Ft. stop, You can see the surface tantalizingly close. The cold now starts to creep in as the stop times lengthen, and the excitement of the dive wanes. You break out your Jon line and settle in for the duration. If you had to do the deco, before the dive, sort of like paying in advance, your dives would probably be a lot shorter.

Once back on deck you re-warm your self in the sun, while you check out the cool stuff you brought up.

Diving the Doria, is not for every one. The depth alone, is not the only consideration. Please be fully prepared when you plan on a trip like this. There are many books about the Doria, and diving on it. I highly recommend Gary Gentile’s book, “Andrea Doria: A Dive T An Era”. A set of deck plans can be ordered from Captain Dan Berg at WreckValley.com, or Captain Steve Bielenda at Wahoo2001.com. Order them well in advance of your trip, so you have time to study them.

Diving the Doria is still the mount everest of diving. It is worth the effort.