15 Abandoned Ships That You Can Actually Visit

whether caused by war mother nature or human error these magnificent ships have long been lost to the depths of the ocean they remain in solitude except for the occasional underwater visitor here are 15 shipwrecks that you can still visit number 15 uss oriskany affectionately known as mighty oh the uss oriskany was the last essex-class aircraft carrier to be built by the u.s navy and following a suspension and construction following the second world war it was finally completed and entered service in 1950 at 911 feet long with a top speed of 33 knots and a complement of 2600 crew and up to 103 aircraft she mainly took part in campaigns across the pacific ocean earning two battle stars for her involvement in the korean war and 10 for her service in the vietnam war the uss oriskany was decommissioned in 1976 and after first being sold for scrap she was repossessed in 1997. all toxic substances were removed and then she was purposely sunk off the coast of florida in 2006 to create the largest artificial reef in the world known as the great carrier reef the flight deck is 145 feet beneath the surface and the island is just 80 feet deep the wreck offers unparalleled diving opportunities for novice and experienced divers alike and is regarded as one of the best wrecked dive sites you'll find anywhere on earth [Music] number 14. omeo built in newcastle england in 1858 the 605 ton omeo was an iron screw steamer that sailed to australia on her first voyage and for the rest of her operational life became integral in the construction of communication systems she was responsible for helping to lay ocean cables as well as transporting equipment to build overland telegraph wires and in between large jobs like these would carry passengers and cargo between melbourne adelaide and new zealand the ship was involved in more than her fair share of incidents including a crash which completely destroyed the swan spit lighthouse in port phillip bay and another in 1895 when she collided with the jetty at hamlin bay and caused a serious amount of damage following this she was used as a floating warehouse in owen anchorage which used to be the port for the city of fremantle but in september of 1905 she broke free from her moorings and drifted onto a nearby beach sand soon built up around her hull and it became infeasible to try to refloat her instead the bay around where she had become stranded became industrialized and as a result of the construction that took place the sand levels reduced and she drifted further out to sea where she now remains to this day she's now 130 feet off the coast and is submerged in just 10 to 15 feet of water with some elements still rising above the surface because of the ease of accessibility the wreck is one of the most popular dive sites in the region and can be visited by divers and snorkelers of all abilities 13 uss arizona built in the 1910s the uss arizona was a super dreadnought battleship that was named after the southwestern state following its admission into the union she was commissioned in 1916 and while she didn't take part in any campaigns during the first world war she was used to escort president wilson to france following the end of the fighting and assisted in the greco-turkish war in 1919 soon after she was assigned to the pacific fleet where she would spend the rest of her career and in 1940 she was transferred to pearl harbor to join the fleet that was being amassed to deter japanese forces on december 7th 1941 the japanese brought the war to hawaii and the arizona was struck by several bombs one of which detonated inside a magazine which violently exploded and sank the ship 1177 people lost their lives on this ship alone which accounted for around half the total number of casualties during the attack and the wreck still lies at the bottom of pearl harbor to this day as the site of such a tragic loss of life it was designated a national shrine in 1962 and a memorial was built over it to give visitors the opportunity to pay their respects learn more about the ship and see it beneath the waves for themselves [Music] number 12 eduard bowlin while most shipwrecks in the world are either submerged beneath the waves or grounded on coastlines there are some that have managed to make it far more inland than you'd expect the most famous of these unusual wrecks is the edouard bowlin which currently lies in a desert more than a quarter of a mile away from the nearest water source the 2272 gross ton ship began operating in 1891 and spent most of its time ferrying people and cargo along the african coast at just over 310 feet long it had a top speed of 10 and a half knots and along with a cargo hole it had an accommodation for 46 paying passengers its route took it past some of the most treacherous rocky outcrops in the world and places that became renowned at the time for scuttling ships in september of 1909 the edward boland suffered a similar fate to many other vessels while journeying between swakopmund in manipia and table bay in south africa and ran aground in conception bay namibia during a storm it was an immediate write-off because of the expanding desert now lies inland in a region known as the skeleton coast alongside countless other wrecks it's in quite a difficult to reach location but is a must-see site for anyone traveling through the region number 11 mv penagiotis built in scotland in 1937 the mv panagiotis was a cargo vessel that worked throughout europe under various different names but mysteries surrounding her ultimate fate along with a stunning location where the wreck can now be seen means that she's one of the most visited shipwrecks in the world according to legend she had fallen into the hands of smugglers said to be working for the italian mafia and was used to transport illegal cigarette shipments in 1980 the greek navy tracked her down and set chase into a storm and the panagiotis was purposefully run aground in a cove so the crew could escape official records however state that the ship had in fact been carrying a legitimate cargo when it was caught in the storm and instead of being chased by authorities the captain chose to beach the vessel to try to preserve the goods when locals saw the wreck they plundered it for all they could and this led to a lengthy legal battle that resulted in 29 people being convicted of theft whatever the truth may be the envy panagiotis became immovable from the beach on the island of zaquentos and remains there to this day the previously unnamed cove which now attracts thousands of visitors each year is called navajo which means shipwreck [Music] number 10 ss yongala the ss young gala was a huge steel steamer that was built in newcastle england in 1903 and was immediately taken to australia to work as a passenger and cargo transporter the name is a word from the language of the gajuri people that means good water but while this may have been an attempt to bring good fortune upon it this didn't entirely go to plan the 350 foot long 3664-ton ship was traveling between melbourne and cairns in march of 1911 when it steamed straight into the path of a developing cyclone it didn't stand a chance and sank into the ocean to the south of the city of townsville all 122 people on board lost their lives it was only a few days later that anyone knew something had gone wrong when some of the cargo began to wash ashore it wasn't until 1958 that the site of the wreck was found by a survey ship that was following up on a report that there could be mines in the area the remains settled at a depth of 98 feet because it was surrounded by an open and sandy region of seabed it has now become an established artificial reef today it's within the great barrier reef marine park and is one of the largest virtually intact shipwrecks in the region as such it's become a popular dive site and sees at least 10 000 visitors each year [Music] number nine ms world discoverer first called the baywa discoverer when it launched from german shipyard in 1974 the ms world discover was sold to the adventure cruises cruise line in 1976 to be used as a vessel that could take tourists to places many others couldn't one of its regular routes was to the antarctic polar regions something that was made possible because of its double hull and it was fitted with a fleet of inflatable rafts that allowed passengers to get even closer to the ice floes in the area as an entertainment and educational ship the world discoverer had an observation lounge a pool and a sun deck as well as a lecture theater medical center and a research lab and a regular staff of biologists naturalists and other scientists to operate the tours on land and perform their studies in april of 2000 while traveling back from antarctica the world discoverer hit an uncharted underwater obstruction in the sandfly passage of the solomon islands the captain was able to send a distress signal to the nearby city and everyone on board was safely evacuated before he steered the heavily listing ship into roderick bay where it has remained ever since now rusting away all salvage attempts have failed and the wreckage is a popular site for those that live on the islands and passengers passing by on other cruise ships [Music] we are constantly adding more people to the top fives production team to bring you all the best content be sure to subscribe with notifications on and hit the like button number eight san francisco maru the san francisco maru was a transport ship that was built in 1919 for yamashita kisen kabushiki kaisha in order to export materials like coal bauxite and phosphate throughout the japanese empire at 385 feet long and weighing 5831 tons it was one of the largest ships at their disposal and had the designation maru which means merchant vessel in the second world war however it was requisitioned by the japanese navy and transported supplies between japan and the inner south sea in early february 1944 the ship had made port in truck lagoon which was japan's main naval base and the site of one of the u.s military's greatest retaliatory strikes during the war several weeks later the early bombing raids had incapacitated the san francisco maru and following several direct hits by 500 pound bombs it sank to the bottom of the lagoon the ship and all the supplies it had been delivering were lost to the water the site is now one of the most interesting wrecks that's possible to dive on at a depth of 140 feet it's not for novices but those who are able to visit get the chance to see the well-preserved bow gun three armored light tanks a flatbed truck and countless ammo crates and various munitions number seven peter iredale named after a wealthy liverpoolian businessman the peter iredale was a 285 foot long four-masted steel sailing vessel that first set sail in 1890 and was used to transport goods across the americas it usually took well-charted routes so rarely encountered any difficulties this all changed one night in september of 1906 while it was sailing from selena cruz in mexico to portland oregon with a thousand tons of ballast and a crew of 27 it had done this voyage countless times before but on this occasion it encountered unusually powerful winds the crew steered into the perceived safety of the mouth of the columbia river but with terrible visibility due to the time of night and a thick layer of mist a gust of wind pushed the ship onto the clat stop spit further winds pushed the wreck ashore but luckily a lifeboat that was sent from hammond oregon managed to save everyone that was on board at first the plan was to refloat the ship because it hadn't been too badly damaged but the conditions over the next few weeks never presented an opportunity to do so and by that time sand had built up around the hull and it was a lost cause now almost 115 years since it wrecked the peter iredale can still be seen in the water with the bow and mass sticking up from the sand it's within the fort stephens national park and is one of the most accessible shipwrecks in the region number six hms vixen the hms vixen was an experimental gunboat that was launched by the british royal navy in 1865 and was the first warship to be built by them that had twin propellers constructed from iron and teak she was one of the most heavily armored ships of her time and despite being just 160 feet long she weighed more than 1250 tons with a crew complement of 80 people the vixen was armed with two 7-inch rifled guns and two 20-pounder guns but she proved to be an ineffective design when it put to trial at sea with her sister ships instead of entering service she was instead towed to bermuda for use as a floating defensive battery to help protect royal navy dockyard on the island from 1868. authorities faced a dilemma in bermuda because the deep channel that approaches the outpost was vulnerable to attack from torpedo boats but a plan was conceived to force any approaching enemies to pass closer to land so they would be within the range of the shore batteries to do this the engines and anything of value was removed from the vixen and she was fitted with explosives and purposefully sunk today she remains in the narrow channel of the reef in water that's around 33 feet deep her bowels can still be seen jutting out of the water and she's a popular attraction for divers swimmers and glass bottom boats number five uss kitty wake the uss kitty wake was a shanti clear-class submarine rescue vessel that entered service for the u.s navy in 1946 at just over 251 feet long and weighing 1780 tons she was a nimble vessel that had a top speed of 16 knots over the following decades she was attached to various fleets and would support submarine movements across the world in 1966 she was involved in the effort to locate and salvage s-171 a missing german submarine and in 1968 she was sent to the atlantic to search for the uss scorpion she was so adept at deep sea searching that it was the uss kitty wake that successfully retrieved the black box from the space shuttle challenger disaster in 1986 in 2008 the government of the cayman islands bought what remained of her hull with the intent to sink her to form an artificial reef and after several days she was laid to rest off the coast of seven mile beach in grand cayman in 2011. once on the seabed she was at depths of between 15 and 64 feet beneath the surface but is now a further 20 feet lower after being moved by tropical storm nate in 2017. with the reef still forming there are strict rules on the behaviors of divers at the site but it's already one of the most interesting sunken wrecks that you can explore number four sweepstakes the great lakes in north america are the largest collection of freshwater lakes on earth and between them contain 21 of the fresh water on our planet's surface they are so vast that people have been sailing their water since at least the 17th century and many thousands of vessels have sunk since then estimates of the number of wrecks vary between 6 and 25 and while the locations of many of them aren't known there are a few in shallower waters that are easy to reach one of the highest concentrations of wrecks is in thunder bay which is part of lake huron and the most popular for visitors is a canadian schooner called sweepstakes the 119 foot long boat sank in 1885 in unexpected weather and now lies just 20 feet beneath the surface and is almost perfectly preserved it's just 50 yards out from big tug harbor which shows just how close the crew were to avoiding the incident altogether and this makes it extremely easy for people to visit you can see the wreck beneath the clear water from the shore but those who want to get a closer look can charter a boat or paddle out by canoe [Music] number three the ss mojano built in scotland and launched in 1905 the ss maheno was a 400 foot long 5 323 ton ocean liner that had a capacity of up to 420 paying passengers as well as the ability to carry a significant cargo her design was cutting edge of the time she was used on routes between sydney melbourne new zealand tasmania and vancouver at the beginning of the first world war the ss mojano was converted into a hospital ship and would assist allied troops across europe once the war ended she was released back to her original owner and resumed her role till the end of her commercial life in 1935. she was sold as scrapped to a shipyard in japan and in july of that year left sydney undertow less than a week into the voyage a cyclone hit the ship and broke the tow line despite the best efforts by the crew it couldn't be reattached and the mojano with eight people still on board vanished it was only rediscovered several days later stuck on a beach on fraser island where the crew had set up camp and subsequent efforts to refloat it failed it's remained in place ever since and it's possible to walk up to it on the beach although access is technically prohibited because it's in a state of decay and the way it's been designated as a place that contains unexploded ordnance number two cabo santa maria the cabo santa maria was a transatlantic transport vessel that often made the trip between europe and the americas in 1968 it was carrying a particularly precious cargo four church bells that were for the new cathedral in the brazilian capital brasilia but there would be no ringing in the streets upon its grand opening in september of that year the cabo santa maria was passing cape verde when it ran to ground on the coast of boa esperanza a local tugboat was sent out immediately to try to pull it free from the sands but by the time it arrived the ship had become wedged in and there was nothing anyone could do to free it the crew managed to escape the incident unharmed that just left a matter of what would happen to the cargo with a network of mules and donkeys along with hundreds of locals most of the items on board were removed and taken to the nearby city a process that almost took a year but it would take a further eight years before the bells would finally make it to brazil and were consecrated in the cathedral's clock tower the remains of cabo santa maria can still be seen today although severely decayed after half a century of being exposed to the elements it has become a part of the identity of the island and inspired a number of artworks and there are regular tours for visitors who want to see it for themselves [Music] number one the tears of allah nowadays with the advent of computer generated imagery movies can be made with far less of an impact on the environment than used to be the case there are places around the world however where you can still see the consequences of some of the most famous big-budget productions and there's possibly nowhere where this is as prevalent as the reefs around nassau in the bahamas stunning scenery has been the backdrop to countless feature films but it's also proved to be a favorite place for the producers of james bond particularly when the script is called for the destruction of a vehicle it's here for example that the vulcan bomber plane wreck from thunderball was sunk in 1965 and has since become a wreath in its own right but just next to it is something even more famous the tears of allah this 100 foot long ship was used in sean connery's last outing as the secret agent in 1983's never say never again in it bond used the boat to escape from a tiger shark and since filming it has remained on the sea floor it's now one of the best dive locations in the bahamas not just because it gives people a chance to see a piece of movie history but also because it's now amazingly bio-diverse when swimming alongside you can see through the torpedo hole that's on the starboard side of the ship and is how it was sunk but you also find yourself surrounded by stingrays turtles and countless other marine animals that live on the nearby reef subscribe 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Channel: Top Fives

Views: 742,763

Rating: 4.8687048 out of 5

Keywords: shipwrecks, Mysterious Abandoned Ships, Abandoned Ships That You Can Visit

Id: 7RJACW-9qc0

Length: 19min 48sec (1188 seconds)

Published: Fri Sep 04 2020