Thorfinn Rec Week

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instructors@asiadivers.com

jerry@the-yellow-box.com

Truk 2001 - Deep Week

Recreational Diving On The SS Thorfinn

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THE DIVERS

THE WRECKS
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6

THE EQUIPMENT

ALTERNATIVE GEAR CONFIGURATIONS

The SS Thorfinn is one of the 3 live-aboard boats that are based in Truk. Its main focus is on sport divers and it has recently added Nitrox to the boat. Currently they have no plans to engage in Technical Diving and instead offer Pan Micronesian Island cruises where they visit some of the other islands in the region.

The boat is well equipped and has a great crew. Divers can do 5 dives a day for 6 days which is a great way to see the wrecks and get acquainted with Truk. The main advantage of the Thorfinn, aside from its huge size, (we were still meeting some of the crew at the end of the week), is the way is runs its diving. They use 4 chase boats to select the sites, and anchor the Thorfinn itself in a sheltered area. This way you get the choice of dive sites. Unlike other live aboard where they moor to the wreck, and the whole boat dives the same wreck. On the Thorfinn, we had no more than 4 divers on any wreck we wreck on through out the week.

Lance Higgs

Lance is the owner/Captain of the Thorfinn and has been based in Truk for eons. He's an old sea dog in the best sense of the word, and is guaranteed to spice up meal times with stories of the battle, or the Thorfinn which (can you believe this), is actually steam powered and a trip to the engine room whilst underway is a must.

Getting There

This is a real pain. I only flew from Hanoi, but had to go, Hanoi-Hong Kong-Manila-Guam-Truk, leaving Hanoi on Saturday morning and arriving on Sunday night. The longest stopover was in Guam, where you pretty much have the whole day. Simon from Professional Sports Divers can arrange stopover rates in the local hotels.

There's little in the way of explaining each wreck on this site, as this is covered in much more detail in the many books written about Truk and the battle itself.

Day 1

Fumistsuki, Shinkoko Maru, Heinan Maru, Betty Bomber

Day 2

Nippo Maru, Yamagiri Maru, Sankisan Maru, Emily Flying Boat

Day 3

Hoki Maru, Kansho Maru, Gosei Maru, Futagami, Suzuki

Day 4

Seiko Maru, Kiyosumi Maru, Ri de Janero Maru, Eissen 741, Fujikawa Maru

Day 5

San Francisco Maru, Fujikawa Maru, Kansho Maru, Sitsuki

Day 6

Aikoku Maru, Heinan Maru

Commonly Visited Wreck and Reef Sites

Ship Name	Highlights	Length	Depth Range
Fujikawa Maru	Lush coral growth. Zero airplane fuselages and wing sections.	439’	0’-120’
Yamagiri Maru	18" diameter artillery shells of Battleship Musashi.	437’	60’-120’
Nippo Maru	2 man tank and artillery guns on deck. Photogenic wheelhouse.	353’	50’-150’
Heian Maru	Torpedoes and submarine telescopes. Massive size.	510’	35’-100’
Sankisan Maru	Lush soft coral growth on mast. Machine gun ammunition in hold.	200’	0’-100’
Hoki Maru	Trucks, bulldozer and tractor in hold. Massive destruction of bow.	250’	45’-150’
Unkai Maru	Photogenic bow gun. Good coral growth on masts.	360’	30’-130’
Rio de Janiero Maru	Awesome size. Photogenic propellers. Large engine room.	461’	40’-120’
Hanakawa Maru	Lush soft and hard coral growth.	363’	10’-100’
Fumitzuki Destroyer	Bow and stern guns, torpedo launcher.	320’	80’-120’
Betty Bomber	Japanese small twin engine bomber.	60’	50’-60’
Momokawa Maru	Aircraft parts, truck frames and artillery shells.	380’	80’-150’
Shinkoku Maru	Lush coral growth. Fantastic marine life. Excellent engine room.	500’	30’-130’
Aikoku Maru	Massive destruction of bow. Photogenic stern gun.	270’	100’-200’
San Francisco Maru	Tanks on deck. Trucks, mines, bombs and ammunition in holds.	375’	100’-200’
Pizion Reef	Wall dive. Large coral heads in the shallows.		15’-200’+
Shark Pass	Sloping coral wall. Good shark feeding area.		40’-130’
Twin Peaks	Two large coral heads creating a channel between. Good shark feeding area.		20’-100’
Blue Channel	Lots of fish, barracuda, sharks and occasionally marlin and mantas.		40’-100’
Blue Wall	Nice wall with lots of fish. Beautiful hard corals in the shallows.		5’-150’+