Dredge Wreck Playa

The Dredge Wreck is about 14 miles from Masonboro Inlet in 65 ft of water. It is in close proximity to the Stone tug and the Pocahontas. The name of the Dredge Wreck is the Playa an 800-ton dredge. It sunk in February 1931 while being towed to Morehead City. A month after the sinking of the Playa, the Coast Guard dynamited the wreck so it wouldn't be a hazard to navigation.

This is a cool little dive. The entire wreck can easily be explored on a single dive. The most noticeable part of the wreck is the thousands of bricks lying all over the site. As you swim beyond the bricks you run into the engine and then into a long boom that stretches out over the sand. Wreckage is scattered around the perimeter and wood timbers can still be seen rising from the sand. Lots of life congregates around the wreck due to all the places to hide between the scattered bricks and rusted out engine. During the summer white grunts cover the entire wreck in what I think is a spawning aggregation.

A dredge similar to the Playa