Type: Shipwreck
Build: Wood
Location: Alpena, Michigan, USA
Depth: 184'
Length: 138'
Built: 1874
Sunk: 1875
Access: Boat
Level: Technical
Orientation: Upright
If Shakespeare wrote about Great lakes wreck diving (although rumour has it he's
still a little dead) he'd write about wrecks like the Cornelia B. Windiate. Why? Because
this is a masterpiece of a dive site. The wreck features everything that is
great about diving in the Lakes: excellent visibility, amazingly preserved
wooden structure, artifacts, and a surprise.
The surprise is... something you would likely never expect to see on a Great Lakes shipwreck, especially one that sunk in 1875: a yardarm. Sure, you've seen yardarms on ships before, lying on the deck, shattered on the lake bottom, or decaying in the ship's hold, but have you ever seen one still IN PLACE on the mast? There are no words to describe what it is like to see the unseeable. Let's put it this way: despite the fact I was in a drysuit I almost wet myself in a fit of utter diving glee, it's THAT good, and THAT rare (or is it just that I have a weak bladder?). No, it really is THAT good.
If it had a ship's bell and an in tact bowsprit I'm not sure what else it could have that would make it any closer to the perfect wreck dive. Unfortunately the photos do not do it justice. The deck is covered in stuff. The cabin is still in place. The forward mast is still standing, mast hoops surround the remains of all three masts, the centerboard winch is still in place, the yawl boat rests along the starboard side, and the anchors are still fastened to their catheads. And yes, the ship's wheel is still there, albeit popped up and on an angle reportedly due to a someone trying to steal it by attaching a line and pulling with a boat.
