About Scuba Diving in North Carolina

North Carolina is a prime location for scuba diving and offers exceptional dives for every level, be it for the novice or expert diver. The ocean waters off the North Carolina coast are known as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic" due to the many shipwrecks located here.

  1. Features

    • Scuba diving in North Carolina is a popular pastime, and has become increasingly so. The waters off North Carolina offer some of the best dive sites in North America, especially when it comes to shipwreck diving and big animal dives. The waters off North Carolina's coast contain more than 2,000 recorded shipwrecks. One of the best-known dive sites along the North Carolina coast is the wreck of the U-352, a WWII German U-boat sunk in May 1942 by the Coast Guard cutter Icarus. The ocean waters off the North Carolina coast also offer divers encounters with awe-inspiring marine life in their natural habitat, from large nurse and sand tiger sharks to moray eels, manta rays, lionfish, angelfish, pufferfish and more. Popular dive trips also include shark tooth fossil diving. North Carolina's regular ocean diving season runs from May to late October. Water visibility runs on average from 40 to more than 100 feet. During the summer season, the average water temperature remains in the 70s but sometimes reaches above 80 degrees F.

    Geography

    • North Carolina has more than 300 miles of coastline, with numerous inlets, sounds and other unique water features produced by its coastal geography--which includes a long series of islands commonly known as North Carolina's Outer Banks. The state's outlying shallow shoals have a noted history of being incredibly dangerous to marine navigation. The Gulf Stream flows closer to the North Carolina coast than anywhere else on the east coast except for the tip of Florida, making North Carolina's coastal waters warm and clear for the most part. This warm and clear water brings in tropical marine life, along with help from the numerous artificial reefs that have been formed just off the coast.

    History of

    • The waters of the Atlantic Ocean along the North Carolina coast are historically known as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic" due to the large number of shipwrecks in the area. Some shipwrecks were caused by poor navigation of the shoals along North Carolina's Outer Banks, others from storms and hurricanes, and still other shipwrecks were caused by war. From Civil War blockade runners to the wreckage of three WWII German U-boats (the U-701, U-85 and aforementioned U-352), to the numerous shipwrecks caused in turn by the German U-boat campaign, many dive locations are historic in nature, and some are designated war graves still holding the bodies of the dead. Noted shipwrecks that also make good dive trips include the Esso Nashville shipwreck and the Papoose shipwreck, known for its abundance of sand tiger sharks.
      Another noted dive location is the shipwreck believed to be the Queen Anne's Revenge, the flagship of the infamous pirate Blackbeard. Controlled dives of this location are offered only at certain times, as artifact recovery is still ongoing at this site. The Queen Anne's Revenge lies in 20 to 25 feet of water, 1.2 nautical miles off Fort Macon, in Eastern North Carolina. Since the start of artifact recovery in 1996, more than 2,000 items have been brought to the surface for research and conservation, while several thousand more still lie beneath coastal waters.

    Benefits

    • Scuba diving in North Carolina is a great form of exercise. This popular form of recreation also offers a unique and unforgettable underwater experience. Divers encounter tropical marine life and get the opportunity to participate in exhilarating big shark dives, and also experience a piece of history, be it from the Civil War, World War I or World War II, or even the age of piracy, when Blackbeard was a name to be feared on the sea.

    Risk Factors

    • As with all forms of recreation, scuba diving in North Carolina does present risk factors. Divers should know their own limitations and skill levels. Some wreck dives are not for novice divers and dive enthusiasts of every level should heed the instructions and warnings from local dive operators. Recreational divers should also take into account any personal health conditions, and note that professional medical assistance and emergency care may not be available in a timely manner on dive trips.