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Entries in Lake Washington (7)

Thursday
04Jun2009

YMS Minesweeper Deck Plans

Located in Lake Washington are three YMS minesweepers.  Two of these vessels are very much intact.  Our team has been using the below deck plans to explore these three vessels over the last several years.  These deck plans are for YMS series 135-409.

Please note that these plans should be used only for general reference.  The vessels in Lake Washington have been modified following their military use and do not fully match the structural diagrams.  Additionally, the two groups conducting penetration dives on the newest minesweeper both experienced partial structural collapse.  The latest collapse was quite serious and could easily have been life threatening.   Both dives required a zero visibility exit from the vessel.

Penetration dives on the Lake Washington Minesweepers should not be undertaken.

The below files are high resolution PDF files:

Outboard Profile

Inboard Profile & Deck Plans

Main Deck, Forecastle, Chart House & Pilot House

Sunday
10May2009

Shallow Barge located south of the 520 bridge

This image is of a very shallow barge located in Lake Washington.  This small barge is located on the West shoreline south of the 520 bridge and is listed on the NOAA AWOIS database.  This wreck is one of more that 50 that Scott Boyd of Emerald Sea Photography has imaged and confirmed the location of in just the last month.

Sunday
03May2009

Location and Imagery of Two New Wrecks in Lake Washington

The Houghton Bay area of Lake Washington is a literal junk yard from the old Lake Washington Ship Yards.  This area is the site of several burned wrecks and scuttled vessels.  It was originally thought that is area was reasonably well described but recent forays into the area have consistently turned up more wrecks.

Our team has scanned the entire area and has identified more than 30 wrecks for eventual exploration.  This last week Scott Boyd of Emerald Sea Photography worked in the area and obtained images of two wrecks tucked into some of the natural geography that were previously unidentified.  This solid work by Scott demonstrates the exceptional capabilities of his sidescan unit for shallow area survey.

Side Scan Image taken by Scott Boyd

Saturday
25Apr2009

PV2 Harpoon - Lake Washington


PV2 Harpoon in Lake Washington - Another visit from Ben Griner on Vimeo.

We dive regularly on the planes in Lake Washington and this dive we ran more video to document the planes condition and any changes we see from year to year. This plane nosed directly into the mud and is stuck there vertically. The tail section is lying next to it in the muck with the bottom at approximately 145' fresh water.
Saturday
25Apr2009

Wreck of the PB4Y Privateer resting in Lake Washington


PB4Y Privateer resting in Lake Washington from Ben Griner on Vimeo.

Today was yet another great dive on this amazing wreck. Our goal today was to document the cockpit glass and two side turrets for comparison to previous video. This plane rests in 154' freshwater just off sandpoint.

For full HD click the video title and watch this video on vimeo.
Saturday
25Apr2009

Sidescan Imagery of Scorpion Site

The below images are of the site currently referred to as Scorpion due to is uncanny resemblance to a Scorpion.  This site is listed by NOAA as a plane but appears to be natural formation.  Two historically significant planes are within one mile of this site.  Images were taken with equipment from Scott Christopher and Sound Aquatics.  Resolution is limited with web publication.  Actual location was identified by Scott Boyd of Emerald Sea Photography.

Enhanced Side Scan Image from 150' Side Scan image from 75' 

Friday
24Apr2009

Exploration of Target #185 (Large Barge)

Target #185 Lake Washington BargeTarget #185 is located North of the the Seattle NOAA offices in 154' of fresh water and is in the same area in which the PV2 Harpoon is located.  The exploration of this site has been a joint effort between Puget Sound Divers and Scott Boyd of Emerald Sea Photography and a co-author of Northwest Wreck Dives.  The image on the right is a sidescan image taken by Scott Boyd.

This is one of several barges in the area and while it is the second largest it may be the most intact.  Addtionally, since this wreck is listed in AWOIS it is possible that this site is one that is well described by another exploration team.  In the next few weeks we will reach out to that team to see if this indeed the site that they have already well described.