The Wreck of the Mandalay

This was our second dive on the Maritime Heritage Trail, and is the most recent of the wrecks, having sunk on New Year’s Day in 1966. The Mandalay was a 110’ 6” long, steel hulled schooner built in 1928. It had several owners, the last purchasing it in 1965 for use as a luxury cruise ship for charter. It was returning to Miami from a 10-day Bahamas cruise when it ran aground on Long Reef in the wee hours of January 1st. She was 20 miles off course due to a distance miscalculation- oops! All 23 passengers and 12 crew were successfully rescued and there was only one minor hand injury to a crew member. Before any official salvage tugs could be deployed, the vessel was stripped to her skeleton by local boats, including the personal items of the passengers! 

The wreck is in water shallow enough for snorkelers, but we used the hookah, which gives us more freedom to take our time exploring without surfacing to breathe. It’s a small wreck with a small debris field, so it only took us about 20 minutes to traverse her back and forth a couple of times. 

My last post included a link to this ArcGis storymap about the Maritime Heritage Trail, complete with interactive 3D models of the wrecks. Check it out if you get a chance. For now, enjoy the show!

Author: Indigo Lady

I am a retired educator married to a retired chemist/engineer/educator. We will be living aboard our solar electric catamaran for as long as possible. View all posts by Indigo Lady