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Kayakers who take to the Potomac River as the weather gets warmer
could find themselves immersed in floating history, if the tide is right. An
ill-fated fleet of wooden steam ships has been rotting away in the brackish
water of Mallows Bay in Maryland for nearly a century.
"It's the largest collection of
shipwrecks in the western hemisphere … just in this tiny bay," Joel Dunn,
Chesapeake Conservancy president told CBS News' Christina Ruffini.
Joel Dunn took CBS News' Christina Ruffini through a trio of
ships known as the "three sisters," a triangular area where the old
boats have become floating forests.
He said the area is home to over 100
decaying vessels.
yes, those tree-covered "islands" are - or were - ships |
"Over 90 of them are from World
War I and they were built in an effort to win the war," he said.
The ships were commissioned over a
century ago in 1917, when President Woodrow Wilson needed more ships to fight
German U-boats. The goal was to build 1,000 in less than two years —
prioritizing quantity over quality.
"They were built quickly,
inexpensively, with green wood," Maryland's underwater archeologist Susan
Langley said. "Initially these were gonna be just expendable, and so they
didn't put a lot of effort in."
The war ended before even one of the
ships made it across the Atlantic. Eventually, they were gathered, stripped for
salvage and abandoned in the bay.
According to Langley, a local
tradition of watermen taking their old boats up the river "to die"
added to the crowded number.
"They use it as kind of a spare
parts department for years, until it subsides back into the environment,"
she said.
"That ship has now become a wildlife sanctuary, a
wildlife mecca," Dunn observed. CBS News
Once the environment does take a
ship, it takes it completely over. During a tour of the Potomac, Joel Dunn took
CBS News past a trio of ships known as the "three sisters," a
triangular area where the old boats have become floating forests.
The once-endangered osprey is one of the many species of
wildlife making a home among the shipwrecks.
Other wrecks can be seen covered in
all manner of local plant life, beavers and even the once-endangered
osprey.
"That ship has now become a
wildlife sanctuary, a wildlife mecca," Dunn observed. "It's got
plants and animals that are thriving as a result of the structure the hull of
the ship provides."
In addition to wildlife, the ships
also bring tourism to the area. Dunn said he hopes they will get people
"on the water" and "inspired to take part."
"We need the next generation of leaders
and voters to care about the environment, to care about our history," he
said.
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While little has changed since our earlier report, the fact that this place exists should be of interest and worth a trip if you live nearby. Kayaks paddled among the not-quite-sunken ships enable you to observe all manner of wild life and the thriving local flora. And with the semi-lockdown in effect, the trip would not put you at risk of encountering crowds!
Until next time,
Fair Winds,
Old Salt
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