Oregon - June 2, 2007
There are few wrecks within the recreational limit of 130 fsw that stir the juices as much as the San Diego and Oregon.  The Oregon was a four-masted schooner that sunk in the late 1880's when it collided with a smaller schooner.  Who said  "Size doesn't matter?"  The San Diego, an armored cruiser, has the dubious distinction of being the only sizable U.S ship sunk during WWI.  Folks still dispute whether the San Diego collided with a mine or was torpedoed.  Customers and crew included Vern Heagy, Gerhard Maree, Greg Kulp, Tom Pritchard, Colin McCrackle, James Zimmerman, John Katerenchak, Dave Hoshauer, Steve Mooney, Roger Heins, Terry Martzall, Ric Reichenbacher, Tex, and Captain Zero. The Oregon fit the bill for being an intact wreck, but it had a lot of boo boos.  On my first dive with Kulpie, we hung around the tie in at the bow with a couple of lost anchors that were recovered later.  I stabbed a "flat fish" partially hidden under the sand.  Hmmm – not a fluke.  This fish had a mouth larger than Carly Simon's – and a lot more sharp teeth than Carly.  I urged the fish into the bag and found out later it was a monk fish, the poor man's lobster. That was one ugly fish!  On the second dive with Steve Mooney, we wandered along the port side and across the broken deck.  Other divers made the long swim to the boilers, where Roger and Ric tag teamed a porthole back to the surface.  The tempsat the bottom were a bit brisk at 43, but we warmed up during our hang.

Plans for the evening dive were scuttled by rough seas. Come morning, we pulled the hook and made the short trip to the San Diego.  We were tied in near the bilge keel on the starboard side.  After an uneventful run along the bilge keel, I "went to the dark side" where things were much more interesting.  With 25 ft viz, I swam past the gun batteries along the port side that permitted tight access into the wreck – and then I found one of the torpedo tubes.  I resisted the urge to swim inside the tube.  No need to worry about finding bugs on my dive: Dave Ho had scooped them up during his dive along the starboard side. The San Diego is a fabulous wreck.  Note to self: Schedule another trip to the San Diego.
 
These are great wrecks, and at 100-130 fsw, they allow generous bottom times. The seas were cooperative, at least during the day, and we took about a dozen lobsters, a few dozen scallops, and one ugly monk fish home. If you haven't been on the San Diego, you're missing a great wreck.

Doc Tom