Diving Traunsee – Maria Theresia Wreck

Site Overview

Traunsee – Maria Theresia Wreck is a wreck dive site in Upper Austria – Salzkammergut, Austria, set among the country’s varied freshwater landscapes. The Maria Theresia is a 19th-century transport vessel that now rests as a deep wreck in the Traunsee, one of the lake’s most historic dives. Lying at around thirty to forty metres, it is a serious deep dive that demands good gas planning and cold-water discipline. The old timber-and-metal hull is draped with freshwater growth and is home to perch and other fish using its shadow. Clear, dark water and the wreck’s age give it a strong atmosphere for experienced divers and photographers. It is reached by boat from Gmunden and, like all Traunsee dives, requires the Arge Tauchen permit. This is a bucket-list Austrian freshwater wreck for technically minded sport divers. Conditions are typical of Austrian inland water: visibility generally runs from 8 to 18 metres, the current is low and the water temperature ranges between 4 and 18 degrees Celsius depending on season and depth. The marine life is freshwater and centred on european perch, northern pike, lake trout (brown trout), with the full community described below for those planning a dive. Because of its advanced rating and the need for Advanced Open Water certification, Traunsee – Maria Theresia Wreck is best approached with the right thermal protection and, where relevant, altitude or overhead training. It is a representative example of why Austrian lake diving, with its cold clarity, submerged forests and wrecks, attracts divers who want something different from tropical reefs.