Dive Grand Cayman - Oro Verde

By Author: Chad Malicote
Total Articles: 2
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The Oro Verde shipwreck located in Grand Cayman continues to be a favorite location for divers since she was sunk on May 31, 1980 by the Cayman government. The vessel a is located in about 15 meters of water just off Grand Cayman's famous Seven Mile Beach. The wreck has deteriorated a lot since her reefing, mainly due to several hurricanes that struck the island during the previous 30 years. The wreckage these days is distributed over a broad area with only the bow section remains intact.You can read on the history and circumstances of the Oro Verde ...
... on Steven Smeltzer's blog and explore the entire underwater image gallery on Smeltzer's website.Overview of the diveThis wreck and surrounding coral reefs are home to a selection of sea creatures such as, fishes, Sea Turtles, crustaceans and corals, creating one of the most visited "second site" dives in Grand Cayman, often frequented following a deep wall dive and quite often as a night dive. While the ship was in pristine shape when it was sunk along with lying on her starboard side in the sand next door to a patch of reef, the wreck's finer details have since succumbed to the force of time; hurricanes have broken scattered the ship over a large area nearer to the coral reef. Still, theOro Verderemains a great example of a thriving artificial reef. A marker is attached to the bow section which remains the only intact part of the wreck. There are no longer any ways to enter the wreck but you can look by means of a couple of port holes into the bow section. The debris field runs from the bow section to the north along several coral fingers. Diver's may decide to spend all or a portion of the dive on the shipwreck and a portion of the dive exploring the coral reef. At this dive site there is a wide array of reef fish including Parrotfish, Sergeant Majors, Angelfish, Silversides (seasonally), Schoolmasters, groupers, eels and crustaceans.. This can be a very good dive and it can be particularly good as a night dive site owing to the diversity of fish and other marine animals which happen to be present. The Oro Verde is located approximately one hundred yards off shore so advanced divers in great physical condition could reach it as a shore dive but with the long swim and required dive flags and floats due to offshore boat traffic, it doesn't make a lot of sense? All of the Grand Cayman dive operators are going to be happy to take you to the Oro Verde as your second half of a two tank west side boat dive, an afternoon dive or on a night dive. It is definitely recommended to dive this shipwreck whether it is the first time or if you have been diving on the shipwreck in the past. The site is continuously changing and the fish and other marine animals on the dive site always make for an interesting dive. View images of other shipwrecks in The Cayman's including the Doc Poulson and the USS Kittiwake.Visit Smeltzer's website or blog for additional underwater photos and information. The pool is open...