Plymouth, England, United Kingdom

James Eagan Layne

The James Eagan Layne is a US Liberty ship torpedoed by U-1195 on 21 March 1945 in the western approaches to Plymouth and beached at Whitsand Bay, Cornwall, where it eventually broke up and settled on a sandy seabed at 24 metres. The 134-metre wreck is the most dived shipwreck in southern England and a rite of passage for British divers. The bow section remains the most intact, with the foremast, anchor, hawsepipes and forecastle clearly recognisable. Cargo holds are largely open after decades of decay, allowing easy and safe swim-throughs for trained divers. Visibility typically ranges from 4 to 10 metres, and water temperature varies between 8 and 16 degrees Celsius across the year. The wreck is densely encrusted with plumose anemones, dead man's fingers, hydroids, sponges and small kelp, and supports populations of pollack, bib, ballan wrasse, conger eels, edible crabs and lobsters. Currents are usually weak. Charter boats run from Plymouth, and Layne is often paired with the nearby HMS Scylla.