JAMAICA Western
Caribbean
Jamaica is the third largest island in the Caribbean. This beautiful
island
is made up of plains, mangrove swamps, rivers that flow through the
mountains,
and a tropical rain forest.
Although we have' not found too many wreck sites being used by sport
divers in Jamaica, the island is full of coral formations, caverns
and overhangs
for divers to explore. Jamaica does have many more wrecks and as
more
divers travel to the island, these will be found, explored and
enjoyed.
For more information about Jamaica visit the Jamaica Board of
Tourism’s official website –
www.visitjamaica.com
ANN
BONNIE
Although the wreck of the Ann Bonnie is not the remains of a
historical
shipwreck, it is a good wreck for newly certified or resort course
divers'
The wreck is 50 foot long and is actually a boat sunk by a local
resort, and has
been modified to look like an old pirate ship. The Ann Bonnie even
has
cannons mounted to her decks. Granted they are concrete
reproductions
but their presence still gives divers a nice photo opportunity' The
Ann
Bonnie is in 30 feet of water and visibility on the site is best
described as
crystal clear. For information on a trip to this wreck contact the
Club
Caribbean or Jamaica Jamaica.
CAYMAN TRADER
This old freighter was abandoned and left rusting in the harbor
before the
Harbor Master scuttled her in 1980. She can now be found resting
between
South Key and South East Key in Kingston Harbor' This site must be
dove
on a calm day and unless you are familiar with the area it is a hard
wreck
to find. Depth at the site ranges from 60 to 70 feet and visibility
has been
described as murky.
LA DOMICANA
La Domicano was a three masted schooner sunk in 1951 by a hurricane'
She can now be found inside Kingston Harbor off the old airport
runway'
Depth on the wreck ranges from 20 to 30 feet and visibility is
usually poor'
only two to three feet. This dive should only be attempted by
advanced
divers due to the poor visibility and the amount of nets and
monofilament
fishing lines that cover the wreck, creating possible snags.
PLANES
The remains of two small Cessna aircraft can be found off the
western tip
of Jamaica in Negril. The Planes were abandoned and had been left
sitting
at the Negril Airport. After hurricane Gilbert roared through the
area both
planes *.t. damaged beyond repair. In December of 1988, a local dive
operation sunk the wreckage. One Cessna can be found intact at a
depth
of 50 feet on a sand bottom just next to a reef. The second Cessna
is now
resting in 90 feet of water.
TEXAS
The Texas was a British Mine layer which was sunk by collision in
1942.
The 100 foot long wreck is now sitting upright in South Kingston
Channel.
Divers will reach her smoke stack in 80 feet and her propeller in
110 feet
of water. Divers will also find an anti-aircraft gun still mounted
on her
forward deck. The area has no noticeable current, but is located
inside the
shipping lanes. Anyone who would like to visit this site would have
to
rent a boat from Port Royal and check with the harbor master for a
shipping forecast. According to Peter Espeut, diving officer for W.I.
University, the exact location of the wreck can be obtained from the
University of the West Indies Sub Aqua Club by contacting the
zoology
department.
Basic shipwreck
information and images for the Caribbean 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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