Mackinaw City 2008 trip report

[do it easy]

Well, we all survived the trip!!! As a matter of fact, I think the only thing that I lost was my pride and dignity after a night of the pub crawl. Don't believe anything else that anyone tells you about this trip- it didn't happen! If anyone asks, I spent Tuesday night at the library researching shipwrecks! ;)

Brett, Jeff, and I had a great vacation diving in Mackinaw City with Greg. The wrecks were old and wooden and the whitefish was fresh and tasty!

We did two dives each day, after a hearty breakfast of eggs and whitefish! After the dives, we refilled our tanks, and then took off on the fudge and beer crawl! Mackinaw City has lots to offer and we only scratched the surface. One highlight is that I finally had a chance to see the laser show that I missed last year.

We had 4 days of great diving- depths ranged from 65' to 120' and temps were downright balmy in the mid 40s. We dove the Cedarville, the Eber Ward, the Maitland, the Young, the Barnum, and the Minneapolis. On the last day, we had the pleasure of diving with Doug and his son Travis. I skipped the last dive due to a neckseal leak, but it was an interesting experiment on how well my Weezles would stand up to 43f water!

I don't have any good pictures of the Cedarville, since I was still mastering the whole art of underwater photography :D The Cedarville is a 588' freighter that sank in 1965. This was the only steel wreck we dove and she is a big 'un- almost as big as the Bradley!!

Next we dove the Eber Ward, which is a 213' steamer that sank in 1909. She is very much intact and she even sports some Great Lakes porcelain. In the third picture, you might be able to see an anchor in the background.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2198.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2203.jpg

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http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2224.jpg

[do it easy]

Here are some pictures from the Maitland, which is a 133' bark that sank in a triple collision in 1871. The gash that sank her is quite evident. Her masts were salvaged shortly after she sank, so the mast holes are empty.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2264.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2236.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2238.jpg

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http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2263.jpg

The William Young is a 138' schooner-barge that sank in 1891. The ship is very much intact and includes the windlass, deadeyes, the wheel and many other artifacts.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2300.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2322.jpg

[do it easy]

We dove the William H Barnum on a calm day. The Barnum is a 218' wooden steamer that sank in 1894 due to ice. This is a fun wreck to dive since the decking is partially collapsed and exposes a large part of the ship. The pictures I have don't do her justice.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2348.jpg



Lastly, we dove the Minneapolis, which is a 226' wooden steamer that sank in 1894, one day after the Barnum sank. Her HUGE rudder lies behind her stern, but the propeller is very much intact.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2404.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2400.jpg


Thanks to Brett, Jeff, Doug, and Travis for making the dives safe and enjoyable and thanks to Greg Such of Shipwreck Adventures (http://www.shipwreckadventures.com/) for putting together a world class trip!

Look at that glassy water!

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l129/photobucketpepo/IMG_2342.jpg

[brettbyers]

We did have a great time. Tony,s talk of the pub crawl didn't happen because he and Greg got drunk the night before we were going to do the crawl, we did do mini pub crawls during the week. The weather was great, a little cool but that was ok for suiting up. Tony took about three hundred photos, I'm surprised that his flash didn't burn out. We didn't see any rain until the day that we drove home. I think I will try to charter this trip again next year.

[Gluehuffer]

I always love to dive the Straits. You got some nice pictures. The Straits are a difficult place to get good shots given the conditions.