How to Find a Shipwreck

Finding a shipwreck is not only about searching for hidden treasure. A boat that went down from a storm or war that has been lost for years is just as exciting a find as pirate ships with untold riches. But it's also not as simple as looking at a map and going to the location.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Money
• Location of shipwreck
• Boat
• Retrieval gear

1. Join the International Registry of Sunken Ships. Their website has both free and fee-related information sections on ships that have been lost. It includes treasure ships as well.
2. Research the location of the ship you wish to find.
3. Go to the last known location and have divers, if possible, go into the water to look for the boat. If the water is too deep for divers to safely search, use cameras that can withstand lower depths.
4. Search for the shipwreck in the water at its last known location and outward in all directions. Just because a boat went down in one location, does not mean it is still there years later.
5. Search with patience for the shipwreck, going slowly through the relevant areas.

Tips & Warnings

• Sometimes a ship has been reclaimed by the sea and you will have to dig through the sand to find it.
• Sometimes it takes years to find a lost ship due to sand and sea creatures growing over, around or through the shipwreck.
• Be careful of your surroundings while in the water. Sharks are attracted to movement and might be patrolling your shipwreck area for food.
• In some locations, sharks will attack without provocation due to the kind of sharks inhabiting the water you are in.