The Reef Princess was a timber-hulled dive and charter vessel that sank at Wheeler Reef on 4 October 1981. According to the North Queensland Underwater Explorers Club, she had 38 passengers and crew aboard when a storm with 45-knot winds and torrential rain struck; the vessel foundered among a group of bommies near the small sand cay on the reef. Everyone was recovered, but the timber hull broke up rapidly in the surge, and by March 1985 club divers reported 'very little to discern it as a vessel'.

Today this is less a wreck dive than a piece of reef history. What remains – scattered fittings, metal components and perhaps engine parts – lies among coral bommies in shallow water near the cay, and has been colonised by the same corals and reef fish as the surrounding reef. Divers who know the story can spend part of a Wheeler Reef dive searching the sand gutters between bommies, but anyone expecting a hull will be disappointed.

The site's significance is local: the loss was one of the defining incidents in the early history of dive tourism out of Townsville, and it is a reminder of how quickly weather can change on the open mid-shelf reefs. It sits in the green-zoned part of Wheeler Reef, so the usual rules apply – no collecting, no fishing, no anchoring on coral – and any artefacts should be left in place. Wheeler Reef itself rewards the trip, with deep bommies to 25 m, sand patches with garden eels and razorfish, a reef edge with swim-throughs and a cleaning station, plus good numbers of reef sharks, trout and sweetlips.

The Reef Princess remains are best treated as a curiosity added to a shallow bommie dive rather than a destination in their own right. Coordinates are not published and no operator lists the site, so confidence in its exact location and current condition is low.

Boat only. Adrenalin Snorkel & Dive departs the Fuel Wharf at Breakwater Marina, Townsville, at about 7:00 am and picks up at the Nelly Bay ferry terminal on Magnetic Island at about 7:50 am; the run out to the mid-shelf reefs (John Brewer, Lodestone, Keeper, Helix, Wheeler) takes roughly 2–2.5 hours each way depending on sea state, and the reef is chosen on the day to suit wind and tide. Paid parking is available around Breakwater Marina and the Townsville ferry terminals; Magnetic Island guests catch an early SeaLink ferry or walk to the Nelly Bay terminal.

Private boats launch at the Ross River or Townsville Breakwater ramps; the reefs are 70–90 km offshore, so a capable offshore vessel, EPIRB and a good forecast are essential. Use public moorings where installed and never anchor on coral.

The Townsville mid-shelf reefs sit fully exposed to the south-east trade winds, which blow 15–25 knots for long stretches from April to September. Operators generally cancel when winds exceed about 20 knots or a strong wind warning is current, and the 2–2.5 hour crossing is rough above 15 knots. The calmest windows are the late-spring and early-summer glassouts (October–December) and occasional winter high-pressure lulls.

Visibility is usually 12–25 m, dropping after big south-easterly blows and after wet-season floods from the Burdekin and Herbert rivers push turbid plumes offshore (January–April). Marine stinger season (box jellyfish and Irukandji) runs roughly November to May – wear a full-length stinger suit or wetsuit with hood and gloves, carry vinegar. Cyclone season November–April; tropical lows and cyclones can close sites and damage coral (TC Yasi 2011, TC Debbie 2017).

Tidal currents around reef edges and bommies are strongest on spring tides; plan wall and pass dives near slack.

Combine with a Wheeler Reef bommie dive: from the mooring navigate towards the sand cay and search the bommies on the sand for timber fragments and fittings at 5–10 m. Use a compass box pattern and keep to the sand to avoid damaging coral.

No regular operator visits the remains specifically; may be seen on Adrenalin Snorkel & Dive Wheeler Reef special trips or club charters (NQUEC).