Rainbow Warrior

Greenpeace's flagship, bombed by French secret service agents in Auckland Harbour in 1985 in an attack that killed photographer Fernando Pereira, now rests off the Cavalli Islands near Matauri Bay. The salvaged hull was scuttled here in December 1987 as an artificial reef, the masts removed and displayed onshore. The 40 m wreck lies upright in 27 m of water with the deck around 16 m, its steel skin smothered in a dense carpet of varicoloured jewel anemones that give the dive its nickname, Jewel of the North. Schools of snapper, blue maomao and demoiselles hang over the wreck while kingfish patrol the blue and john dory hover near the superstructure. Cooler subtropical water and depth make this an advanced dive, though current is usually mild.