Scuba Diving....

BOTTOM DWELLERS
Five of the world's top wreck-diving destinations

Diving the Graveyard of the Atlantic

Historical significance and a variety of vessels--plus Caribbean-like Gulf Stream waters--makes North Carolina's coast a wreck diver's dream. The wrecks date back as far as the Spanish fleets of the 1500s, and all await adventurous divers from marinas in Morehead City and Beaufort. The area truly deserves the nickname "Graveyard of the Atlantic."

Divers who are into living history will definitely want to log some bottom time on the U-352. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter, Icarus, sank this 218-foot German World War II submarine in 1942. It now lies at about 115 feet and teems with marine life.

Off Cape Fear, the City of Houston, a 290-foot passenger freighter, is one of the oldest wrecks regularly visited by local dive shops. It sank in a 19th-century storm and now lies at about 90 feet.

Other notable wrecks in the Tar Heel State include the Papoose, a 328-foot landing-craft repair ship torpedoed by a German U-boat in 1942. Entry into the hull is possible through several wide openings , and sand tiger sharks, moray eels and lionfish populate her. But what divers have been calling the Papoose is actually another wreck called the Hutton. The real Papoose lies deep off Oregon Inlet, near Cape Hatteras.

The Spar, a 180-foot U.S. Coast Guard cutter is a prime spot to see tiger sharks. She lies upright in a little more than 100 feet of water.

Need to Know

Getting There: New Bern, North Carolina (EWN), is the nearest airport to Morehead City and Beaufort.
Price Tag: Half-day trips start at $65; full-day trips from $115, including weights, but not gear or tanks. The Olympus Dive Lodge has rooms as low as $25 per night.
Local Operators: Olympus Dive Center (olympusdiving.com) and Discovery Diving Company (discoverydiving.com).
Editor's Tip: Catch nurse sharks feeding on a night dive at the Spar.

Local Knowledge

"The concentration of fish life around these wrecks is phenomenal--sometimes there are so many that you can't see through them. That's why boat captain's sometimes say the visibility is lower than it really is. There are also World War II wrecks and artificial reefs. All that is well worth the two-hour boat rides."   ---Nema Triplett, Olympus Dive Center