The Grace Darling was a 75 ft wooden sailing schooner built in 1876 that sank in a storm off Bulwer in 1894 while carrying coal, dynamite and detonators. Her remains lie in 9-11 m off the western side of Moreton Island and are one of the few wooden sailing-ship wrecks accessible to recreational divers in Moreton Bay. Little of the timber hull survives after more than a century, but the site is still recognisable.

The most obvious feature is the ballast mound, about 1.5 m high, which marks the outline of the vessel. Nearby lies a large iron oven from the galley, and fragments of ship timber poke through the sand. The mound has become a small reef, encrusted with sponges and corals and sheltering fish, octopus and wobbegong sharks.

Because the site is small and shallow, the dive is slow and exploratory rather than scenic, rewarding divers interested in maritime archaeology and in the critters that colonise such sites. Visibility is often about 15 m on a good high tide, which is better than many inner-bay sites. The key constraint is the current, which is strong enough that the wreck must be dived at slack water.

Like all historic shipwrecks in Queensland it is protected, and nothing may be disturbed or removed. The Grace Darling is not on regular charter schedules and its position is not widely published, so most visits are made with Brisbane clubs that know the site. It complements the Bulwer Wrecks and The Pines nearby on a western Moreton day.

Boat access. Brisbane charters (Brisbane Scuba from Manly Boat Harbour; Go Dive Brisbane; Brisbane Dive Academy) cross Moreton Bay to the western shore of Moreton Island in roughly 45-60 minutes. Private boats launch at Scarborough Boat Harbour, Manly or the Port of Brisbane-area ramps (Wynnum, Victoria Point for the south) and run north-east across the bay; the run is sheltered from ocean swell but can be choppy in fresh south-easterlies.

Divers with 4WDs can also take the MICAT vehicle barge from the Port of Brisbane to the Tangalooma area and drive the western beach (QPWS vehicle permit required). The wreck lies offshore from Bulwer; the position is not widely published, so dive with a club or operator that has the mark.

Current-affected: marinelife.org.au says it must be dived at slack water. Plan for the high-tide slack for the clearest water. Sheltered from ocean swell but exposed to westerly and north-westerly winds.

Visibility is often around 15 m on a good high tide, much lower after rain or on the ebb. Summer afternoon sea breezes from the north-east make anchoring off Bulwer uncomfortable.

Descend at slack water on the ballast mound, find the iron oven and scattered timbers, and circle the site slowly. The wreck is small, so a single slow loop plus time looking for critters in the ballast fills the dive.

No regular operator; dived occasionally by Brisbane clubs and on request with Brisbane charters.