Shipwreck Trail

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Within Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary lies a trail of historic shipwrecks, scattered along the coral reefs and buried in the sandy shallows a few miles offshore. The nine ships along this Shipwreck Trail have many tales to tell, from the stories of individuals who came before us to why they were here and their difficulties in navigating these waters.

Visitors are encouraged to explore the sites along the trail. An underwater guide is available for each site on the Shipwreck Trail, providing the shipwreck and mooring buoy positions, history, a site map, and information about marine life divers might encounter. Conditions on the Shipwreck Trail sites vary from easy dives in shallow water to deeper dives of l00 feet or more where swift currents may be encountered. Some of the deeper sites require mooring to submerged buoys.

Help Protect Artifacts

Please help protect the sites on the Shipwreck Trail, and all the sanctuary's maritime heritage resources, so that they may be enjoyed by future generations. When diving, remember to control your buoyancy, since shipwreck structures can be as fragile as the marine life they support. Disturbance and removal of artifacts is prohibited. It's best to leave these pieces of history where they are, for other divers to enjoy and for researchers to study. Learn more about responsible diving practices here.

Diver peering into the remains of the ship's large iron mast.

Adelaide Baker

In 20 feet of water, 4 miles south-southeast of Duck Key, lie the remains of a three-masted iron-rigged and reinforced wooden-hull bark.

A historic black and white photo, view from the ship's bow looking aft, a large vessel moving backwards into the water from land, being launched for the first time

Amesbury

An artificial reef located 5 miles west of Key West in less than 30 feet of water.

Diver in a black wetsuit viewing the sealife growing on the metal encrusted remains of the shipwreck's bow

Benwood

A British merchant marine freighter lying between French Reef and Dixie Shoals in depths ranging from 25 to 45 feet.

Diver swimming in the blue ocean viewing the jagged remains of a ship's iron hull

City of Washington

An iron-hulled steamship that ran aground east of Key Largo on Elbow Reef in 25 feet of water.

Diver in the deep blue ocean swimming over a shipwreck covered in colorful marine life

Duane

A U.S. Coast Guard cutter lying upright on a sandy bottom in 120 feet of water, 1 mile south of Molasses Reef off Key Largo.

Diver swimming next to a large steel shipwreck in deep water

Eagle

An artificial reef lying on its starboard side in 110 feet of water, 3 miles northeast of Alligator Reef Light.

Diver with camera taking photos of a shipwreck in the sand

North America

Remains of a three-masted, early 1800's vessel resting in 14 feet of water in sand and grass flats north of Delta Shoals, just east of Sombrero light.

A diver viewing a pole-like object lying in the sand on the seafloor

San Pedro

The oldest wreck on the trail, and a member of the 1733 Spanish treasure fleet caught by a hurricane in the Straits of Florida where she sank in 18 feet of water 1 mile south of Indian Key.

Divers with flashlights swimming around a wheel-like structure on the seafloor

Thunderbolt

Sunk intentionally as part of an artificial reef project, lying intact and upright on a sand bottom in 120 feet of water 4 miles south of Marathon and Key Colony Beach.

Interactive Shipwreck Trail Map

This map shows the location of shipwrecks that are part of the Florida Keys Shipwreck Trail within Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Scroll or use the + and - symbols to zoom in and out on the map and use your cursor or keyboard arrows to navigate. Click on a map feature to learn more about it.