The SS Davenport is a wartime wreck with a dramatic end. Grey Nurse Charters records that she was a US munitions carrier built in Oregon in 1912 - a 911-ton, 61 m timber steamer. On 10 October 1943 she caught fire in Newcastle Harbour, and because of the risk posed by her cargo she was towed out of the harbour, finally sinking in about 12 m in front of Stockton Surf Club.

The fire shaped what divers see today. Grey Nurse Charters describes pipework and machinery bent and fused together by the heat, an unusual and striking sight. The timber structure below the waterline, which was protected from the fire, has survived and leaves many holes and hiding places for marine life.

The combination of twisted metal and old timber framing makes an interesting, photogenic shallow wreck. The gaps in the lower hull shelter fish and invertebrates: bream, luderick, leatherjackets, yellowtail and small reef fish, with moray eels and octopus in the cavities and rays on the sand around the wreck. Encrusting growth covers the metal.

At 12 m, the Davenport is an accessible wreck for Open Water divers and a good shallow dive to pair with the Yarra Yarra or the reefs off Nobbys. Visibility is the main limitation, since the wreck sits close to the harbour entrance where the Hunter River plume is strongest; timing the dive for high tide after dry weather makes a big difference. Its wartime story and fire-fused machinery make it one of Newcastle's more memorable shallow wrecks.

Charters and private boats leave from Newcastle Harbour - the Carrington or Stockton boat ramps, or Newcastle Cruising Yacht Club/Marina precinct on Wharf Road - and run out past Nobbys Head through the harbour entrance, a busy commercial shipping channel where port traffic has right of way and Port Authority rules apply. Parking with trailer bays is available at both ramps. The Davenport lies in front of Stockton Surf Life Saving Club, just north of the harbour entrance - only about 5-10 minutes from the ramps.

Because it is close to the harbour entrance and the surf zone, dive it with a skipper who knows the mark.

The Newcastle offshore sites are exposed to the full Tasman swell and generally need less than about 1.5 m of swell and light winds; strong southerlies and north-easterlies both make the run from the harbour uncomfortable. Visibility is the main variable: the Hunter River outflow through the harbour entrance stains the water for days after rain, so the best diving follows a dry spell and is usually timed around high tide, when clean ocean water pushes in. The East Australian Current brings warmer, clearer water from late summer into autumn, while winter can be cold (around 15-16 °C) but surprisingly clear.

Being close to the harbour mouth, visibility on the Davenport is strongly affected by the Hunter outflow - dive near high tide after dry weather.

Descend to the wreck and follow the timber hull remains, exploring the fused machinery and pipework and peering into the gaps in the lower timber structure for sheltering fish. Return to the line.

Protected historic shipwreck (sunk 1943).

Grey Nurse Charters dives the Newcastle wrecks and reefs by arrangement from Newcastle Harbour and Swansea; Dive Newcastle and local clubs dive them from private boats. There is no fixed daily schedule - trips run on demand and conditions.