The Valiant is the northernmost wreck of the Sydney region and the best small intact wreck within reach of Pittwater boats. She was a 22.5 m, 72-ton steel tug built in 1945 for the Ministry of Munitions and worked for the Melbourne Harbour Trust before a Sydney company bought her in 1978 to convert for fishing charters. She failed survey, and the end was untidy: one account says she was being towed out in 1981 to be scuttled in deep water when the tow parted and she sank where she lies; another has her going down in 1982 on the way to a burial at sea.

An explosive charge used to remove the propeller may have opened the hull. Either way she settled 1.4 km east of Barrenjoey, pointing west toward the safety of Broken Bay. The tug sits upright on clean sand at 27 m with a list to port that has slowly increased since divers first documented her in 1989.

She is essentially whole: hull, bulwarks, wheelhouse, funnel base and deck fittings remain, and there is room to look into the bridge, cabins and crew quarters. The engine room has filled with sand. The whole wreck covers only about 150 square metres, so it is a compact dive with everything within a few fin-kicks of the shot line, and the modest depth gives 25 minutes of no-decompression time for an Advanced diver.

Marine growth is rich for a small wreck, with sponges, sea tulips and anemones colouring the plating, and it attracts a lot of fish: yellowtail, bream, mado, stripey, white-ear, black-tipped and common bullseyes, sergeant baker and passing kingfish. Visibility is the wild card, ranging from 20 m to almost nothing depending on tide and the Hawkesbury. The Valiant suits Advanced divers wanting a first intact wreck, Pittwater boat owners, and photographers who like fish-covered steel on white sand.

It also serves as a shallow alternative when the deep Broken Bay wrecks are out of reach.

Boat only, 1.4 km east of Barrenjoey Head at the entrance to Broken Bay. The closest launching is Pittwater: Careel Bay, Bayview or Rowland Reserve ramps, then 15–25 minutes north past Palm Beach and around the lighthouse. Sydney charters (Manly/Rose Bay) take 60–75 minutes.

The tug rises about 4 m from the sand and shows clearly on a sounder; GPS 33°34.70'S 151°20.74'E (WGS84). Anchor on the wreck itself because the surrounding sand does not hold well. Tidal flow in and out of Broken Bay can be felt on the surface.

Open ocean off Broken Bay. Exposed to every swell direction except due west; look for less than 1.5 m swell and light winds, ideally a morning westerly before the north-easter fills in. Hawkesbury River flood plumes after heavy rain cut visibility badly for days.

Tidal streams in and out of Broken Bay can be felt on the shallower sites near Barrenjoey; the deeper offshore wrecks see East Australian Current surface streams instead. Best visibility May–September. Being close to the Broken Bay entrance, visibility on the Valiant swings from excellent to under 3 m with tide and river flow; dive the top of the incoming tide for the cleanest water.

Descend the line to the wheelhouse at about 22 m. Circle the hull at deck level, look into the bridge, cabins and crew quarters (the engine room is largely filled with sand), then drop to the sand at 27 m to see the stern and the site of the blown-off propeller. Twenty-five minutes on the wreck, then ascend the line with a safety stop.

Sydney Dive Charters and Dive Centre Manly run to the Valiant a few times a year, usually as a special northern trip; Central Coast operators (Terrigal Underwater Group, Central Coast Divers) also visit. Most dives are from private boats out of Pittwater.