MS World Discoverer — Attraction in Central Province

The MS World Discoverer, built for the wild seas, ended her days on a reef she never saw coming. April 30, 2000, she found her fate in Sandfly Passage, ripping her belly open on an uncharted reef. Captain Oliver Kruess—cool as ice in a boiling sea—drove her into the shallows like a cowboy steering a wild stallion to save every soul on board.

Now, she rots away in Roderick Bay, a broken carcass for the ocean to feast on. The looters have come and gone, tearing away whatever pieces of her old grandeur they could carry. She leans at a sharp 46 degrees now, a gutted shell, but folks still come. They come for a taste of what was—a dark shrine to a time when the sea didn’t care who you were, or what dreams you carried. And there she waits, wearing her rust like an old drunk’s regret, whispering tales to whoever...

MS World Discoverer, Roderick Bay, Nggela Islands

This cruise ship was built in 1974, specifically for polar voyages, and had a double-hulled construction to protect it against collisions with ice. It apparently didn’t protect against every obstacle, however, because in 2000 the ship hit an uncharted reef in the Solomon Islands and all the passengers had to be evacuated. The captain then steered it into Roderick Bay, where it has remained grounded and...

Fascinating place to visit to see a shipwreck that has been there for more than twenty years. The shipwreck was mainly above water, there were ropes and ladder tied to the ship to swing around or climb up to the wreck. The lagoon was formed from the wreck and the shore. This became a safe area for snorkeling and shipwreck exploration. There was a village within 20 minutes walk from the site and the villagers were warm...