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Rockaway Wreck
LakeshoreDM - 6/15/2009 11:02 AM
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Category: Personal
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Sunday, I went with a couple of divers from Lakeshore Scuba to South Haven, MI to dive the wreck of the Rockaway, and an artificial reef. We dove from the 1945 fishing tug Elsie J., not the fastest boat, but a good boat to dive from with a friendly and courteous Captain and crew. The Rockaway was a 107 foot scow scooner built in 1866 that sank in 1891. The wreck although broken up rests on the bottom of Lake Michigan in 65-70 feet of water. Part of the wreck lies covered from the shifting sands, but a good portion of the wreck is visible. Visibility on the dive was about 45-50 foot, temperature on the surface was around 55 and 46 on the bottom. Dive time was about 35 minutes including a safety stop. All around a fun dive. The artificial reef however was not nearly as much fun, as there was not many fish and the visibility was closer to 20 feet. All in all a good pair of dives. Later this week the local dive club here in West Michigan is planning a dive in Baptist Lake, and I plan to also make trips to Crockery Lake and Lake 16 during the week.