Charleston Tug

The Charleston Tug is a 130-foot tugboat that has been sunk as an artificial reef just off the coast of North Myrtle Beach. The wreck sits upright in 19 metres (62 feet) of water, with its superstructure rising to a shallowest point of around 9 metres (30 feet), giving it good vertical relief across the hull. An adjacent field of submerged Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs) lies alongside the main wreck and can be explored as part of the same dive.

The site consistently produces some of the best inshore visibility in the area, and the controlled depth range makes it well suited to beginner divers. Open Water students can complete checkout dives 3 and 4 here, and it also serves as a practical location for the Wreck Diving Specialty and Advanced Open Water courses.

The wreck supports a varied resident community. Expect to encounter grouper, schooling barracuda, Spanish mackerel, spadefish, and black sea bass, while gobies and oyster toadfish occupy smaller recesses in the structure. Sharp-eyed divers can also find octopus tucked into the hull.