German WW II U-352 & U.S.C.G.C. Spar

For the 4th of July, I traveled from Rawlings, VA to Morehead, NC (5 hours) to do some wreck diving and watch the great fireworks show.   The fireworks were great and lasted about 30 minutes, which is one of the longest shows I have seen.  On the drive to Morehead, VA from Rawlings, VA we passed a lot of tobacco farms (shown on the left) since we had to cut through some farm roads.

We originally planned for 4 dives, but the last two were canceled due to bad weather so it was a shame because the first two were some of the best dives I have done so far.   With the first two dives I broke my deepest record so far and got to see lots of fish and sand tiger sharks.

First dive: German WW II {en:U-352} submarine.

My Max Depth: 112 ft / 34 m

My breathing gas: 30% oxygen nitrox mix

Time: 29 mins

Decompression stop: No, 2 minutes away from a mandatory decompression stop.  Performed a 8 minute safety stop at 15 ft / 4.5m for the sake of extra safety.

Visibility: Very good

Temperature: Upper 70s F / low 20s C

Location: Click here

Description (Wikipedia):

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Unterseeboot 352 or U-352 was a type VIIC Nazi German U-boat that served in the North Atlantic during World War II. It was launched on 7 May 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Hellmut Rathke, with a crew of 49.

In January 1942, U-352 began active patrols in the northern Atlantic toward the United States of America. Operating chiefly out of St. Nazaire and Kiel, U-352 was ordered toward the eastern coastline of the United States on 7 April 1942. The United States Coast Guard cutter Icarus intercepted and sank it on 9 May. Thirty-three crewmembers survived, were taken prisoner, and served the remainder of the war as prisoners of war.

The U-352 lies in about 100 feet of water off the North Carolina coast. She sits at a 45-degree list to starboard.

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This site was discovered in 1974 by Olympus owner and Captain, George Purifoy, and several friends. The history behind this site has been televised and featured on the History® Channel, and is one of North Carolina's best known dive sites.

Second dive: The {en:USCGC Spar (WLB-403)} wreck

My Max Depth: 105 ft / 32 m

My breathing gas: 30% oxygen nitrox mix

Time: 35 mins

Visibility: Very good

Temperature: Upper 70s F / Low 20s C

Description:

The Coast Guard Cutter Spar was sunk as a diver friendly wreck, the180ft long and 37ft wide Spar sits upright in 100ft of water and is completely intact. The Spar got its name from the US Coat Guard Motto "Semper Paratus, Always Ready" which was an appropriate name for the Coast Guard buoy tender commissioned June 1944. Making port at various locations up and down the Northeast US, the Spar was one of the most awarded vessels in the Coast Guard fleet and served in a variety missions during its 50 year service including submarine hunting and oceanography assignments. After being decommissioned in Feb of 1997, the ship was sunk as an artificial reef off the coast of Morehead City. Now home to Sand Tiger Sharks, the Spar is a very popular site since it sits upright and has lots of opportunities for penetration.

Here is a better video than what I took of the Spar, courtesy of Olympus Dive Center.  Click "HQ" if it does not play.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4f0pPNCFpac