Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Preserve

The Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Preserve is a 148 square mile area extending from Wilderness State Park to the Cheboygan area, including most of the South Channel, and extending to the northern edge of Mackinac Island. The preserve is divided in two by the Mackinac Bridge. The Preserve includes the waters offshore from Mackinaw City and St. Ignace, as well as all or some of the shorelines of Bois Blanc Island, Mackinac Island, Round Island, and St. Helena Island.

The Preserve features 15 marked shipwrecks for experienced divers, with 8 additional buoyed sites in shallower water.  There are several other nice shipwrecks to dive in deeper waters nearby, though these are not marked by the Preserve.  Frequent fog, ice, and narrow shipping lanes were the cause of most area wrecks.  Half a dozen lighthouses in and around the preserve testify to the dangers that existed prior to the invention of radar in the 1940’s. Tragedies have continued, however. One modern wreck within the boundaries of the preserve is the Cedarville, a self-unloading freighter that sank in 1965 after a collision in foggy conditions.

Divers can also visit underwater formations of Mackinac Breccia on the east side of Mackinac Island, just off of and to the north of  Arch Rock.

For those traveling with non-divers or divers looking for things to do between dives, the area offers a wide variety of activities for the whole family.