SHIP NOTES: Source: Gentile, Gary, Shipwrecks of North Carolina: From Hatteras Inlet South, Gary Gentile Productions, 1992
Name: HESPERIDES	Type: Freighter
Date Sunk: 10/9/1897	Cause: Stranded
Size (ft.): 286 x 38 x 24	Tonnage: 2404 tons
Propulsion: Coal-fired steam	Location

DIVING NOTES:
Diving Depths: 25-35 ft.
Visibility: Highly variable tending towards the cloudy side because of its proximity to the shoals
Current: Slight to undiveable
Summer Temperature: mid 70s to high 70s
Points of Interest: Four bladed propeller, rudder assembly, boilers, anchor;
Fish/Animal Life: Many of the shallow water NC marine fishes - oyster toadfish, spadefish, sheepshead, etc.
Description: This wreck is a bottom time lovers dream. At less than 40 feet, dives of greater than an hour are not unusual. Quite a treat for North Carolina. Getting on this wreck, however, is another matter. It sits directly in the shoals and is ofter undiveable due to the currents. It is also no wreck to approach on a rough day. The steering quadrant comes within less than 10 feet of the surface and could rip the bottom out of any unsuspecting dive boat. The wreck i s sitting on its keel and is contiguous. The bow is sitting upright and fairly intact with the old-time anchor sitting on the port side. The stern also offers a good bit of relief, with the rudder assembly, steering quadrant and four bladed prop sitting i n place.

PHOTOS: Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995 by Paul M. Hudy
Wreckage amidships		Coral heads near bow
Wreckage near engine	Bow and top of anchor	Sheepshead heaven in the boilers	Four-bladed propeller
Steering quadrant		Portside anchor on deck