The Betsey Island graveyard, west of Little Betsey Island at the mouth of the Derwent, is Hobart's ships' graveyard: from the 1930s to the 1980s obsolete vessels, barges and sections of the old floating bridge were towed here and scuttled in about 20-34 m. The Marine Life Network guide calls it a huge concentration of wreck dives very close to Hobart, with a pebble-and-mud bottom that stirs up easily, poor visibility after bad weather or decaying Storm Bay swell, and massive yellow and white jewel anemones and, at times, hordes of school fish on the wrecks. The Leura is the oldest vessel in the graveyard: built in Liverpool in 1878, she was scuttled here in 1934.

The guide gives her as 1,186 tons and 250 ft (76 m) long. She lies about 500 m south-west of Little Betsey Island in about 20 m, and after nearly a century on the bottom she is heavily broken up. Her two boilers show on a sounder and are the key landmark; the guide notes she is difficult to locate but has 'by far the best fish life' of the graveyard wrecks.

The boilers and remaining frames provide vertical relief in an otherwise flat area, which concentrates fish: schools of small fish, leatherjackets and wrasse gather around the structure, and larger fish such as trumpeter may be present. Jewel anemones and sponges cover the steel. Because she is broken up, the Leura is best dived as a slow exploration around the boilers, looking at the invertebrate growth and the fish.

At more than 75 years since her loss, the wreck is protected as historic heritage; nothing may be removed. The Leura's age makes her a link to the late nineteenth-century coastal steamers that served Tasmania and the mainland. The same low-visibility caveats apply as for the rest of the graveyard.

South Arm is about 35 km (40 minutes) south-east of Hobart: cross the Tasman Bridge, follow the South Arm Highway (B33) through Rokeby and Lauderdale to South Arm. The main boat ramp is at South Arm (Blessington Street/Harbour area) with trailer parking and toilets; Lauderdale (Doran's Road) is an alternative ramp further north. From South Arm the Betsey Island graveyard lies about 5-6 km south-east across the mouth of the Derwent, west of Little Betsey Island, roughly 15-20 minutes by boat.

The Marine Life Network guide recommends an echo sounder to locate the individual wrecks, which are low on the bottom; there are no public moorings, so anchor carefully in the pebble-mud bottom off the wreck and leave a boat attendant.

Betsey Island lies at the mouth of the Derwent where it meets Storm Bay, so decaying southerly swell and strong southerly or south-westerly winds make the ride rough and stir up the pebble-and-mud bottom. The Marine Life Network notes the graveyard is not renowned for visibility and recommends calm, dry weather and an ebb tide, when clearer water sits over the wrecks. After Derwent floods the water can be very dark.

Northerly and light westerly winds give the best conditions; late summer and autumn are most reliable. Expect 3-8 m visibility at best, often less.

Find the two boilers on the sounder and shot beside them, then explore the scattered hull plates and frames outward from the boilers, returning to the shot before turning pressure.

No scheduled operator trips; Hobart clubs (Tasmanian Scuba Diving Club and others) and private boats from South Arm and Lauderdale. The Dive Shop Hobart and Go Dive Tasmania can advise.