WRECK DIVING IN NORTH CAROLINA 



Photo by Mark Hooper 



From blockade runners 

 to schooners to 

 submarines, the 

 ocean off the North 

 CaroUna coast is 

 strewn with the 

 remains of thousands 

 of wrecks. 



BY SARAH FRIDAY 



Just a few miles off North 

 Carolina's coast lies an un- 

 derwater museum filled with 

 history, mystery and enchant- 

 ment. The sunken ships of the 

 Graveyard of the Atlantic comprise a 

 collection that's intriguing to a dif- 

 ferent kind of tourist. Fish and fisher- 

 men flock to these artificial reefs in 

 search of meals. For a closer look, it's 

 scuba divers who have the advantage. 



Thousands of old crafts rest be- 

 tween Currituck and Calabash, mak- 

 ing North Carolina a wreck diver's 

 paradise. Only a few hundred ships 

 have actually been located, however. 

 Of these, about 100 are at divable 

 depths, says Rod Farb, diver and 

 author of Shipwrecks : Diving the 

 Graveyard of the Atlantic. The 

 wrecks lie from near shore to 60 miles 

 offshore in water 30 to 160 feet deep. 



The number and variety of wrecks 

 in North Carolina lure novice and ex- 

 pert divers from around the world. 



Along the ocean floor are submarines, 

 schooners, steamers, gunboats, 

 blockade runners, barges, tugs, 

 freighters and other boats up to four 

 centuries old. Most of them sank when 

 snagged on a series of shoals jutting 

 from the capes and inlets of the Outer 

 Banks. Others went down when they 

 met another ship, dangerous currents, 

 bad storms or hurricanes. 



To no surprise, these vessels are in 

 all states of disarray, says Farb. The 

 John D. Gill, a World War II tanker 

 off Wrightsville Beach, sits straight 

 up. Other wrecks are upside down or 

 on their sides. And most have disin- 

 tegrated in the middle with the bow 

 and stern left intact. 



With such a unique collection of ex- 

 hibits, the Graveyard of the Atlantic 

 offers something for every kind of 

 diver. 



History buffs can explore Civil War 

 blockade runners or a submarine like 

 Continued on next page 



