Wrecks up North?

[cvchief]

I was trolling Por Esto and found this article about 2 wrecks for diving up north I think? I also found the MX website with a little tour of one. The one pictured looks kinda small, but I thought it was interesting as I had not hear of them.

YouTube - Laguna de Mandinga. Video tour in Spanish

Google Translate MX site translated. The 360 view thing is kinda boring if I found the right place, but the website itself is pretty cool I thought.

From Por Esto:
COZUMEL, August 6 in Cozumel .- Although its presence has gone virtually unnoticed by the population and even the divers themselves, INAH has launched worldwide a virtual tour of the ship "Laguna Mandinga," Army unit relieved of service and intentionally sunk in 2006 in the north of the harbor.
On the National Institute of Anthropology and History, is offered from this weekend a virtual tour of the shipwreck of Laguna Mandinga, which is in the north of the bay of Cozumel.
It was Friday June 2, 2006, in the context of the celebrations for the Navy Day, when the boats sank Cozumel Laguna Mandinga and Patzcuaro, former military ships discharged from service.
The idea was to create a new attraction for divers in the north, at the height of the beach cottages and tent the military's, where there are no more than a few patches of natural coral.
The sinking of the ships should create an artificial reef, providing a substrate for the coral to be fixed to it and attracting fish and other wildlife refuge in its shadow and its recesses.
In addition to creating the artificial reef, the other main objective was to pull down a little pressure on natural coral reef marine park, giving other options to tourists and also to boaters who do not have permission to operate in the park offer their tours around the protected area and sometimes, 'hack' into the park.
However, five years of its sinking artificial reef has grown little, which is natural, and divers and boaters have almost completely ignored, since apart from a few who visit to be an interesting place, the reality is has not been very successful so far as a tourist attraction, it is rarely visited and in general people do not know of its existence.
However, this was the site chosen by INAH to perform an underwater documentary of just over five minutes in which you can see the wreck (sunk or sinking) of Laguna Mandinga and available for everyone through inah.gob.mx page along with other "virtual tours" of different destinations in the country, all related to the history of Mexico.
Maybe with this win promotion site popularity. The island has three 'wreck', the above Laguna Mandinga, Patrolman Patzcuaro, which is in the same area and the gunner in front of Felipe Xicoténcatl Chankanaab, all donated by the Navy of Mexico.

 

[BTravlin]

I dove them both in July as they are very close to one another. Don't know their names but they were on the small side and not too impressive but then I'm not a big wreck guy either. Give them a few more years and they may be more interesting.

 

[cvchief]

Best I could get out of the translations is that they were sunk in an area of nothing but sand, so they are the only attraction there. That about right? As they like one dive close or two dives? In the video it looks like they must be fairly close to sure as the diver went in at the shore and scooter out to them.

The names I found were Laguna Mandinga (in the pictures) and Patrolman Patzcuaro.

 

[deborahdelamar]

Had they been able to sink the boats where they originally intended, you'd have a wreck dive site, accessible from shore, a short walk from your apartment, Chief. INAH and local authorities want to attract divers to the site. Unfortunately, that area stays shallow quite a ways out, so the boats ended up in the high-traffic approach to Puerto Abrigo. The current is often too strong to swim out that far, so boat or scooter provide most sensible access.

 

[BTravlin]

And you're right CV in that they are on sand flats with little else of interest close by except small coral clumps with baby lion fish.

 

[Christi]

All of the above is correct - and unless you are a real air hog, won't even keep you busy for an entire dive

 

[Zman96]

Is that the area just out from the port captain's building?

 

[Dave Dillehay]

Both are directly in front of the Sedena Market (Military PX). Both are much smaller than the C-53 but nonetheless military boats.

Current is frequently strong there and they are on a sandy bottom-- but they are in line with the current so if you see one you then get to see the other. IF you are small a penetration can be made but not recommended. It does not seem reasonable to try to do them on a shore dive.

When doing afternoon 1 tank dives from the Villa Aldora we frequently include them with a nice little reef just north Puerto Abrigo so you can actually get two dives out of one tank.

Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

 

[Texas Torpedo]

For those who don't know the area but might notice a boat ramp, the two "boats" are mostly straight out from there.. A little North of a direct line if memory serves. To the North of them and a little inshore are the "bricks".. To the South and a bit further toward the wall is the start of the "killing fields".. If you like to hunt lionfish and the current is actually going southward, you'll be in heaven!

While there is pretty much only sand around these two wrecks, they are worth seeing at least once if you are into this kind of thing.. You can penetrate them but it is tight, and no-mount at least into the bow of one of them.. Be careful of the fire coral if you are wriggling inside. I've never failed to spot a lionfish here either.

 

[Zman96]

That is the area I thought it was. We nailed a lot of lionfish in this area including Pedro getting 8 or 9 in one of the tires near the wreck.