The Bowbell
Conditions & tides
Scored by DiveConnect's site-physics model
Marine forecast via Copernicus Marine. Score is a rule-based guide from swell/wind vs. the site's exposure — always dive your own assessment.
Dived here today? How were conditions vs. what we showed?
About this site
The Bowbell is the wreck of the sand dredger Bowbelle, which lies off Madeira at 32 metres. She sank on 25 March 1996 after breaking in the middle during routine dredging. By then she was known as the Good King, from the Portuguese Bom Rei, the name given when she was sold to a Madeira company a year after a collision on the River Thames in London in 1989 that killed 51 people.
The wreck is still in good condition. Marine life colonised it very quickly after it sank and sea plants grew in abundance, so it has become a favourite with underwater photographers and video divers. It is also described as lying at about 22 metres, shallow enough that it is used for wreck diving courses.
Many parts are spread around the ship for you to identify, including the excavator that lies on the deck and is now home to several moray eels. There is enough to see that one dive will not cover it all. Water temperature runs from 18 to 24°C and visibility is great, and the site suits beginners.
Marine life here
Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.
East Atlantic Sally Lightfoot CrabGrapsus adscensionisReported here · unconfirmed
Short-finned Pilot WhaleGlobicephala macrorhynchusReported here · unconfirmed
Common DolphinDelphinus delphisReported here · unconfirmed
Common Bottlenose DolphinTursiops truncatusReported here · unconfirmed
Durable tips from divers — access, hazards, marine life, facilities. For day-of conditions, use the report tool in the conditions card above.
No notes yet. Dived here? Be the first to leave a tip.
Share a write-up or a photo. Submissions are reviewed before they appear on the page.
Nearby dive sites
Shops that dive here
No shops have listed this site yet.