SAN SALVADOR ISLAND
(Bahamas)
San Salvador is known as the island upon which Columbus made his
first
footstep in the new world. This island sits on top of the east edge
of the
Bahama bank and is located 175 miles east-southeast of Nassau.
This island has become quite attractive to divers. Especially nice
for novice
divers, there is no current with which to be concerned; the
visibility is always
excellent and the wall starts in only 35 feet of water and runs the
whole
12 miles of the leeward side of the island.
For more information about the Bahamas visit the Bahamas Board of
Tourism’s official website –
www.bahamas.com
SS FRASCATE
Frascate Shipwreck. Photo by Steve Frink
The SS Frascate was a 261 foot by 35 foot, English steel hulled
freighter.
The Frascate was built in 1886 in Germany and originally named
Daszig.
on January l, 1902, while en route from New York to Jamaica, she ran
aground and sunk.
Today, the Frascate lies scattered on a sandy bottom in 15 to 20
feet of
water off Riding Rock Point. She was blown apart by the Army Corp of
Engineers as she was believed to be a hazard to navigation, and has
since
then been spread over a very large area.
Her two large steam boilers remain intact and are the highest points
on
the wreck. Other recognizable items include deck plating, a pile of
anchor
chain and ballast stones. Her wreckage has become home to many small
crabs, sergeant majors, and a green moray eel that lives in the
boiler.
Divers can actually swim through a 2A foot tunnel formation that
runs the
entire length of her massive boiler. The Frascate's stern section is
excellent
for photography. Her bow still holds some of the ship's cargo of
flour
which remain neatly stacked in sacks that have over time become a
concrete
like substance.
PORT KEMBELA
The Port Kembela, also known as the Port Campbell, was a 474 foot
freighter.
She ran aground in 1924 and remained intact until a hurricane broke
her
up in 1926.
She is now resting outside of a reef in 25 feet of water on a hard
rock
bottom. The Port Kembela is only accessible on very calm days due to
the
swells and a strong surge that is common in the area.
Basic shipwreck
information and images for the Bahamas section of this site was
taken with permission from the book Tropical Shipwrecks by Daniel
and Denise Berg. You are invited to submit your shipwreck related
articles, images and information. As long as the text, photographs,
sketches etc are of professional quality we will showcase them. Full
credit will be provide and a same page link to your web site can be
arranged.
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