The Barcoola is an old steel fishing trawler that sank in 1994 and now lies on sand in about 44 m, well offshore from 1770. It has a reputation out of all proportion to its size: marinelife.org.au notes that locals claim it has better marine life than the famous SS Yongala, and Dave Harasti writes that the wreck itself is often obscured by its 'massive school of baitfish'.

Around and within that bait ball live large estuary cod, Queensland gropers, red emperor, tropical snappers, coral trout, kingfish and giant cobia, and bronze whaler sharks patrol the area. Soft corals and sponges have colonised the hull. In winter, visibility can reach 40 m, and on those days the sight of the wreck appearing through a wall of fish is one of the great dives of the southern Queensland coast.

It is also a serious dive. At 44 m it is beyond recreational limits, the site is tidal and must be dived at high-water slack, and it lies around 40 km from the nearest ramp through a shallow bar. Marinelife.org.au describes it as suited to experienced divers; in practice it is a technical dive requiring decompression planning, appropriate gas (trimix to manage narcosis) and full boat support. Dive Spear and Sport @ 1770 offers technical wreck diving to 48 m, which covers this depth range.

Little else is published about the vessel's size or history. Anyone planning a visit should treat the Barcoola as an expedition-style day: long weather windows, redundant gas, emergency oxygen and a clear plan for a site many hours from a recompression chamber.

Boats launch at the Seventeen Seventy boat ramp on Round Hill Creek (at the end of Captain Cook Drive in the town of 1770, about 6 km north of Agnes Water; the town is 2 hours' drive north of Bundaberg via Rosedale or the coast road). The Round Hill Creek bar is shallow and should be crossed on the top half of the tide in a calm sea. The Barcoola lies about 44 km from the 1770 bar at the position published by marinelife.org.au (23°47.086'S 151°55.576'E, WGS84) – allow 60-90 minutes in a capable trailer boat.

Drop a shot on the wreck; there is no mooring. The Shannon II wreck lies about 4 nm away and is sometimes visited on the same trip.

These offshore sites lie north of the protection of K'gari and are exposed to the south-east trade winds that blow for much of the year, so they need a calm spell – winds under about 12-15 knots and seas under 1-1.5 m – for a small boat to make the run and anchor safely. North-westerly and westerly winds in winter give the flattest seas and the best visibility (up to 30-40 m on the outer wrecks). The wrecks are tidal: plan to dive at high-water slack, and prefer neap tides, as the current can run hard across open sand on springs.

The Round Hill Creek and Turkey Beach bars are shallow and dangerous on a low tide with swell. Summer brings northerly sea breezes, storms and cyclone risk (November-April).

Descend the shot directly to the wreck and spend a short bottom time touring the hull and superstructure among the baitfish. Plan the dive as a technical decompression dive, turn early, ascend the shot line and complete staged stops. Carry an SMB and have a boat handler aboard.

Technical dive: trimix or at least conservative nitrox/air with planned decompression; redundant gas, deco gas, SMB, emergency O2 on the boat. Nearest chamber is in Brisbane – plan conservatively.

Dive Spear and Sport @ 1770 (opened December 2022) offers technical wreck diving to 48 m for qualified divers on demand; otherwise private boat or club charter from 1770 or Turkey Beach. No scheduled recreational trips.