AlaskaDiver
Contributor
- Messages
- 612
- Reaction score
- 6
- # of dives
- 1000 - 2499
We dove with Discovery Diving out of Beaufort, NC aboard the Captain Lady vessel. The captain, Leroy Claytor was an excellent captain, spearfisherman, diver and was extremely knowledgeable about the wrecks themselves. Hes been captaining since 1983! We took a 2 hour boat ride (okay, I confess, I lost a few ounces of coffee overboard, but was otherwise just fine for the diving) to the Papoose & to the U-352. Seas were 6 swells and it was about a 15 knot wind on the way out calming down dramatically on the return home (no coffee spilled on the way home
.). The nearby Gulf Stream brought in branches of warm water. The captain mentioned that this was the first time he had people out in 4 weeks to these wrecks. We were thrilled.
The Papoose was 117 to the sand with 68F water. Air temps were in the 70s and sunny. We saw a huge school of bait fish. In fact, there were so many small fish we could not see the wreck and had a difficult time keeping an eye on the circling Sand Tiger Sharks. They were huge! The schools of Amberjack were extremely dense. The Southern Sting Rays were plentiful and huge as well. The three of us, (2 adults and a 15 year old who did great) enjoyed approximately 20 mins of bottom time. The Papoose was an oil tanker from WWII. We found out that there were three tankers sunk in the general area which were mislabeled as each other. Intersetingly, this is the Hutton. For all intents and purposes, it is the Papoose. We went down the line with a moderate current.
The U352 was 111 to the sand in 70F water. Air temps were in the 70s and sunny. The three of us, (2 adults and a 13 year old who did great) enjoyed approximately 20 mins of bottom time. The school of bait fish here was smaller and less dense than the Papoose affording greater visibility of the wreck. Ribbing on the top of the sub was all that remained as the deck plates had wither been removed or had eroded away over time. The currents were crossing at the apex of the sub. The history was interesting on this one as the crew did not realize that they had their gun mounts blown off by depth charges from the US Coast Guard Cutter Icarus. We saw lots of marine life including Yellow Arrowline crabs, a giant Cowrie and several species of fish.
These are my first dives in North Carolina. Id definitely come back for more diving.
The Papoose was 117 to the sand with 68F water. Air temps were in the 70s and sunny. We saw a huge school of bait fish. In fact, there were so many small fish we could not see the wreck and had a difficult time keeping an eye on the circling Sand Tiger Sharks. They were huge! The schools of Amberjack were extremely dense. The Southern Sting Rays were plentiful and huge as well. The three of us, (2 adults and a 15 year old who did great) enjoyed approximately 20 mins of bottom time. The Papoose was an oil tanker from WWII. We found out that there were three tankers sunk in the general area which were mislabeled as each other. Intersetingly, this is the Hutton. For all intents and purposes, it is the Papoose. We went down the line with a moderate current.
The U352 was 111 to the sand in 70F water. Air temps were in the 70s and sunny. The three of us, (2 adults and a 13 year old who did great) enjoyed approximately 20 mins of bottom time. The school of bait fish here was smaller and less dense than the Papoose affording greater visibility of the wreck. Ribbing on the top of the sub was all that remained as the deck plates had wither been removed or had eroded away over time. The currents were crossing at the apex of the sub. The history was interesting on this one as the crew did not realize that they had their gun mounts blown off by depth charges from the US Coast Guard Cutter Icarus. We saw lots of marine life including Yellow Arrowline crabs, a giant Cowrie and several species of fish.
These are my first dives in North Carolina. Id definitely come back for more diving.
