SWIMMING POOL (Maximum depth 55m but you can reach 60m)

An 6.6 magnitude earthquake on 3 March 2023 caused the whole swimming pool to detach from the ship and collapse to the seabed. the following was written back in 2007.

Another dive takes you to see the swimming pool. After swimming out to the second mooring, you drop down. This brings you to the promenade deck just behind the collapsed section and right near the old entrance to the First Class Smoking Lounge.

Kelly and the guide, Charles, near the stern end of the Promenade Deck	The small artillery gun near the pool and Soda Fountain

You then follow the promenade deck towards the stern and drop over the side where it ends. This brings you to the area above the Soda Fountain. You normally stop here for a minute or two to examine Hold Five which is a small hatchway. There is nothing really inside.

Straight below you is the Tourist Class Smoking Room and you can also drop in here for a few seconds. This is also pretty bare. The depth in here is about 50 metres. The Soda Fountain is to your right as you look towards the stern and the pool is above this and to the rear.

The swimming pool	The top ladder of the pool - this is the one at right in the photo below

On the deck above the pool (actually the outside wall of the pool) is a small mobile artillery gun. This is presumably the one that was used for practise gunnery as the ship sailed across the Pacific.

From the artillery gun you swim to your right at 45° and then drop over the "side" which takes you right down past the swimming pool. The depth is about 55 metres at the bottom of the pool (it still has water in it!!).

The swimming pool on the Coolidge when she was built

The colourful tiles of the pool can be seen at the deepest part (count how many - answer at caption for the closeup photo below) and the stainless steel ladders are still there as well. If you are feeling okay, you can drop down under the pool and see the other entrance hatch to the refrigerated Hold Five (there is another above the pool). You should also swim out off the pool a bit to get a full view of the pool and the nearby sections of the ship.

From here you can move towards the bow and drop down and examine the two anti-aircraft (AA) guns that are on the sand. These are set in round casings and have a square bottom section that originally sat in corresponding mounts on the top level of the ship. When the ship sank, they slid out and fell to the sand below. All but one of the single guns are now upsidedown. One here is on it side and the gun makes a good photograph.

There are six different coloured tiles: white, light blue, bright blue, black, lemon and reddy brown	The AA Gun

From here come up a bit to 50 metres and swim towards the bow. You will pass by the remains of the false funnel and then come to the collapsed section over the old First Class Smoking Room, the real funnel and the Lobby. This is where the three rows of toilets that used to be located between the smoking room and The Lobby have fallen. There are only two rows easily visible and I am not sure where the third row is now.

By now you will have been down about 15 minutes so it is time to start ascending. You should head up as fast as your computer will let you as you swim towards the bow. You will see that The Lobby hole in the wreck and you will pass over the skylights which are the roof of the Continental Lounge and The Library. You will pass upper bow gun and the bow before reaching the deco stop area.

The false funnel	Two of the rows of toilets that have fallen from above the real funnel near the First Class Smoking Room

An alternative is to go up through the Soda Fountain after the pool or to quickly look in Hold Six behind the pool. From here swim though the upper levels and look in the Beauty Shop before going to the hull and following this back.

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