Mary Celestia
Depth is the range from the top of the site to its usual maximum; "recommended cert" is the mainstream-agency level operators usually ask for, not a legal rule. Currents and visibility change daily, so treat everything here as planning ranges.
The Mary Celestia ran Union blockades into Confederate ports until September 1864, when Bermuda's south-shore reef ended her career within sight of land; one man, the ship's cook, was lost. What remains reads like a cutaway diagram of a paddle steamer: both iron paddle wheels, one upright and iconic, plus boilers, anchor, and bow frames on clean sand at sixteen meters. In 2011 archaeologists opened a sealed bow compartment and recovered intact perfume bottles and wine, a find that made international news. She is compact, historic, and photogenic, an essential Bermuda dive.
The moment you come for: Standing paddle wheel, Civil War blockade-running history, tidy single-dive layout
Topography: Flat sand off the south shore
Know before you splash
Hazards: South-shore swell can produce surge over the low-lying wreckage.
Conservation: Protected historic wreck under Bermuda law; nothing may be disturbed or removed.
Who you'll meet
Great Barracuda
Lionfish
Porcupinefish
Green Sea Turtle
Nudibranchs
Humpback Whale
Christmas Tree Worm
Frogfish
Also recorded nearby
"Charted here" species were listed by our editors from the sources on this page. Counts are GBIF occurrence records: observations logged within about 5 km of the charted position since 1990, matched only against the species in our catalogue. They show what has been seen there, not a promise of what you will see.
For photographers
Wide angle: ★★★★☆ · Macro: ★★☆☆☆ (editors' 1–5 rating of what this site gives each style of shooting)