Good Beginner Wreck Dive?

[BobbyWombat]

Anyone have a recommendation for a good beginner wreck dive?

I'm OW certified and looking for an interesting wreck dive that is a good for a new diver. Looking for a dive that is well within OW limits and has mild currents.

Any guide books on NC or NJ wreck diving that would be good for me to pick up?

Thanks.

 

[fireflock]

Try the INDRA out of Morehead City/Beaufort, or the Hyde/Markham out of Wilmington/Carolina Beach.

I have 2 books on NC wrecks - Farb and Gentile.

http://www.amazon.com/Shipwrecks-Di...ef=sr_1_1/103-1509248-0910255?ie=UTF8&s=books

http://www.aquaexplorers.com/garygentilenorthcarolina.htm

I like both, but both are getting outdated. This website has a ton of good info:

http://www.nc-wreckdiving.com/shipwrecks.html

Rich

 

[herman]

The vis is not usually too good but the liberty ship off Wrightsville beach is a good beginner site. It's close in and shallow (50ftish) but still enough to give you a good taste of NC diving.

 

[Tortuga James]

If you dive from a private boat, there are all sorts of options out of Morehead, like the Parker, Carteret County's Liberty Ship". Most of the OP's use the Indra, Hutton and Soloide as the inshore trips. Those are accessible by private boat as well, but 12 miles out, so some OW boating skills are required.

The Parker (AR315) is 3 miles down the beach and about 2 miles from shore. Also open ocean, but easy to get to on nice days.

 

[Cape Fear Divers]

Our favorite beginner wreck dive is the Stone Tug, off Carolina Beach. It sits in only 50 feet of water. It is an upright, intact wreck so that it gives you a good wreck diving experience. It is a small wreck, so that it is very hard to get lost. Finally, it sits far enough offshore (12 miles) to have decent vis, unlike the Liberty Ship, which is famous locally for lousy vis.

The Hyde is the next step up. Deeper and larger, but intact and upright, easy to navigate, and a beautiful dive. The Hyde has some of the most abundant fish life of any of our wrecks, and has sand tiger sharks in the summertime.

Feel free to contact me for any more info.

Jim
P.S. Please note our new number: 910-458-7390. I'll change it in the signature block as soon as i send this message.

 

[waterpirate]

If you want to dive Jearsey, get some dives under your belt first and you will have a better time. vis unpredictble, current unpridictable, good wreck diving.
Eric

 

[Tortuga James]

unlike the Liberty Ship, which is famous locally for lousy vis.

The Parker, also a Liberty Ship (It is the type of ship, not a name) off Morehead can have zero viz as well. but some days 20-30 feet. I once had to retrieve the anchor off the Parker when it was such sorry viz it got dark, I mean like a moonless night. We aborted the dive cause of the viz, but the anchor would not pull free. I was pulling myself down the chain and was getting ready to just give up on that anchor when I felt it, but could not see it. The flukes were lodged under some cable or something, but again, I felt it, could not see it.

Who knows, maybe I pulled myself down into the ship, but the viz was so bad I couldn't tell. I was not letting go of that line, cause I knew it was attached to the boat. That was the scariest dive experience of my life.

 

[herman]

Brail diving, now that is fun..
Great to see you here Jim.

 

[waterpirate]

I agree!!
Braille diving is one thing, but the braille anchor pull out allways tightens up my you know what. Heres the rub, the anchor is obviously fouled in who knows what. When you get to the chain are you fouled? Harry scarry moments in my opinion. I did my penetration under those circumstances.
Eric

 

[Tortuga James]

I have a whole collection of other peoples anchors I have salvaged. If that ever happens again, If can't see my hands at the top of the 20' of chain, I am going to unshackle it and use a different anchor for next time. Funny thing is, it didn't scare me until I got back on the boat and started thinking about all of the things that COULD have gone wrong. I just had a little anxious feeling while I was doing it.