Wreck scuba diving can be some of the most fun diving you ever do. Before planes were invented, the only way to get from one continent to another was by ship. Because technology on ships and in weather forecasting was not very good at the time, many ships sank all over the world, making for interesting and fun dives. There are so many wrecks that this article will only talk about wreck diving in Florida.
In fact, there are so many places to go wreck diving in Florida that it will be hard to choose which ones to dive. Hurricanes, coral reefs, shoals, and pirates are all things that can sink ships that are close to shore.
During the time that Spain was a colony, ships most often went through the Florida Straits to get to the Gulf Stream and use its fast-moving currents to help them get home across the Atlantic Ocean. Some of these ships never made it back home safely because they were caught in one of the many tragedies that happened when the ships weren't ready to face Mother Nature. Many of these unfortunate sea victims have been dug up and are waiting for you to come see them.
In the Panhandle of Florida, Pensacola is a great place to go wreck diving. In a small area, there are a lot of ships. In the year 1500, a hurricane would destroy eleven ships in Pensacola Bay. When the huge storm hit, the colonists who were trying to settle on the shore of what is now called Pensacola Bay were unloading their ships. There were no storm alerts like we have now, so they were caught off guard. The loss of the eleven ships led to the end of the colony, which was only there for 60 years.
Another great wreck to dive on is the Trinite. This French shipwreck is near St. Augustine. It sank during a storm in 1565, when the French were getting ready to attack the Spaniards who had settled this part of northeast Florida's coast. The attack did not happen after the ship went down. Today, you can not only scuba dive the shipwreck in St. Augustine, but you can also visit the country's oldest school house and drug store, take a tour of the fort, and have some fun in the sun.
At the place where the Tierra Firme fleet is at rest, you can go wreck diving. During a hurricane in 1622, the Atocha and the Santa Margarita, two of the 27 ships in the fleet, went down with 380 sailors on board. The fleet had more than $250 million worth of cargo between them, and salvaging the Atocha was a very profitable job once it was found. You can now see it and its sister ship in the Florida Keys.
In 1700, the slave ship Henneta Marie sank. It had just unloaded slaves in Jamaica and was headed to Key West to pick up sugar from plantations. During a wreck scuba diving trip today, you can go to Key West and see the oldest known wreck of a slave trading ship that has been named.
Go see the San Pedro while you're wreck diving in the Florida Keys. It was one of the last ships from the New Spain fleet to reach what is now the United States. In 1733, this ship and a number of other ships that were with it were hit by a hurricane. Because of this storm, there are wrecks on the ocean floor for more than 80 miles around the Florida Keys. When the Spanish found this ship, it had been burned down to the waterline so that pirates couldn't take anything from it.
During a hurricane in 1713, a Spanish ship called Urca de Lima ran aground on a shoal off the Atlantic coast of Florida. There were nine other ships that sank during this hurricane, but because the Urca de Lima ran aground and didn't sink, she was used as a supply ship to help the survivors of the other shipwrecks and the one French ship that was still with the Urca de Lima. More than 1,000 men died because of this terrible hurricane.
You can still dive and find shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean off the east coast of Florida, as well as in the Gulf of Mexico, which has calmer waters and runs along the west coast of Florida and the southern edge of the Florida Panhandle.
Florida is a great place to go wreck scuba diving, and you can dive there even in the winter because the water is warm enough. In fact, this southern state is busiest in the winter. If you go to Florida from May to November, which is the off-season, you may be able to get better deals. You'll also be able to enjoy places and beaches that aren't as busy.
When you plan to go wreck scuba diving in Florida, make sure that a professional checks all of your dive gear so that you don't have any problems when you go to a wreck. If you don't want to bring your own diving gear, there are many dive shops along the Florida coast that can meet all of your needs.
If you want to make sure you find the wrecks, it's a good idea to go wreck diving with a charter boat. These captains know where to go so you can find the wrecks you want to see quickly and easily. These locals can also tell you about other interesting places to visit and things to do during your trip.
Remember that safety is always the most important thing when wreck scuba diving. Don't take chances you don't need to. As long as you stay with your dive group, your trip will go very well.
