Sapho

The trip out is the area's standard Berlenga and Estelas day-boat crossing from Peniche harbour. On site, divers work down the Baixa Alagada reef wall to reach the wreck at 30-32m, where the identifiable remains are the boilers, hull structure and anchors of a 1932 Greek freighter. The reef itself draws schools of pelagic fish along the wall, which is the main mid-water interest before or after the wreck. Average visibility around the site is about 12m. Neither source describing the site gives a route, an entry point or which side of the reef to approach from, so plan this dive with a guide who knows the ground; neither source gives enough detail to navigate it cold.

Sapho's differentiator among the area's wrecks is depth and detail together: intact boilers, hull and anchors at 30-32m, a step past Primavera's shallower, easier profile without reaching the depth of the area's hardest technical wrecks. It is also a case of the record needing a small correction. An earlier area-wide reading filed Sapho under the pricier, more advanced Farilhões sector; the local operator's own trip map places it with Berlenga and Estelas instead, and a second, independent catalogue listing agrees on the same location. That puts Sapho on the standard two-tank rate, not the Farilhões surcharge, for a wreck that still asks for depth discipline once you are down.

The trip runs on the local operator's Berlenga/Estelas two-tank day boat: EUR85, cash only, meeting at Peniche around 08:30 and returning around 15:30, with equipment rental available for an extra EUR25. The wreck sits within the Reserva Natural das Berlengas; a separate BerlengasPass covers land access to Berlenga Grande island, and it is not clear from the pass's own rules whether it reaches a diver who stays on the boat throughout. At depth, scorpion fish sit camouflaged against the wreck structure, sea urchins occupy the reef's crevices, and triggerfish on site can bite if provoked, so control buoyancy and keep well clear of the structure. The wreck sits below the thermocline, so expect noticeably colder water at 30-32m than the surface temperature suggests, and a 7mm semi-dry or drysuit either season. Bring a light for the boilers and hull detail in 12m visibility. The 30-32m working depth calls for Deep Diver training or equivalent experience and a conservative dive computer plan; no shallow route or partial dive for an Advanced-only diver is documented.