Caye Bokel, Turneffe Atoll, Belize

Wreck of the Sayonara

The Sayonara was a small wooden passenger and cargo vessel that ferried locals between Belize City and the Turneffe Islands until it sank near Caye Bokel in 1985. Today the wreck rests upright on a sand and rubble bottom near the southern Turneffe lagoon, with the deepest point at about 17 metres and the shallowest at 8 metres. Although the wood superstructure has largely collapsed, the engine block, propeller, hull ribs and assorted iron fittings remain in place, slowly being colonised by encrusting sponges, fire coral and small hard coral heads. The site is excellent for beginners and as a check-out dive at the start of a Turneffe trip: shallow, sheltered, with mild currents. Resident schools of grunts, schoolmasters and yellowtail snappers shelter under the structure, while green moray eels, spotted morays, lobsters, queen and grey angelfish and arrow crabs hide among the wreckage. The visibility is usually 15 to 25 metres. A great photography dive.