Princess Anne Ferry

The Princess Anne is a former Chesapeake Bay car ferry sunk as an artificial reef less than two miles northeast of Lake Worth Inlet, off Singer Island. Built by Sun Shipbuilding in Chester, Pennsylvania, she entered service in 1936 and was cut in half and lengthened to about 335 feet in 1954. A later plan to turn her into a casino ship fell through, and she was sunk on 23 May 1993. The bottom is at about 97 to 100 feet (30 m), with the highest parts of the wreck at about 72 feet. Large sections of the ship remain, including open rooms and stairways. Barracuda gather here in numbers, along with jacks, Atlantic spadefish, parrotfish and the occasional shark, over a hull thick with coral growth. It is a boat dive. Currents here can be swift and can change during the dive, so the plan is set on the day. The depth and current make the Princess Anne an Advanced Open Water dive, and Nitrox is a sensible choice for bottom time.