Congdon Dive Site Description

The Chester Congdon Site

Depth Range:
Stern section Maximum 210 feet, minimum 20 feet
Bow section Maximum 120 feet, minimum 60 feet

The shipwreck Chester Congdon is located on Congdon shoal near Canoe rocks on the northwest side of the island. The ship broke in half when it struck the reef. Congdon shoal is very shallow so be careful approaching the wreck site. The bow section is buoyed on the island side of the reef and the stern is buoyed on the Thunder Bay side of the reef.

The bow section is the intact forward portion of the ship from the stem to just behind the bow cabins. There are four deck levels that can be penetrated although the lower level easily becomes silted. All of the furnishings of the upper three deck levels were removed while the ship was on the shoal. However, there are still eleven port-lights (portholes with the glass intact) remaining on the wreck. It is rare to see an intact pilot house on a shipwreck, which makes this dive an awesome sight. Although the bottom near the back corners of the wreck site is 120 feet deep, it is relatively easy to keep your maximum depth to 110 feet.

The stern section lies at a very steep angle with the fantail almost level with the bottom in 210 feet of water. The forward cargo holds are in 20 feet of water. Nothing but cargo holds can be seen in less than 150 feet of water so this one is generally considered a tek dive. A double ships wheel still exists on the roof of the stern cabins, although an amateur salvage attempt in the 70's left both wheels broken. When the ship hit the bottom the rudder was driven up through the deck and is a dramatic example of the forces generated when a massive ship crashes to the bottom. Many of the interior wooden cabin walls have collapsed and the back portion of the engine room is filled with wheat. The boiler room is also still accessible but large "pillows" of rotten wheat hang precariously on the pipes of the aft boiler room wall. The stern is not dived much so visibility inside the rooms can be drastically reduced from silting. It is important to have excellent buoyancy control and anti-silting techniques to penetrate this one. Artifacts that remain on the wrecks are there because divers before you left them for you to see. Please do the same for the next diver.