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Quote:

Originally Posted by RedDog382 (Post 4024587)

One interesting thing few people realize is that even though the Edmond Fitzgerald sank in "deep" water ... if one were to stand the intact ship on her stern, the bow would raise above and tower 200 feet over the surface of Lake Superior. May God rest their soles and comfort the family and friends of those lost that day.

Yes the bow hit bottom at 30mph while the stern was still on the surface. I can't even imagine what that must have been like.

Quote:

Originally Posted by freshwaterfiend (Post 4024765)

Yes the bow hit bottom at 30mph while the stern was still on the surface. I can't even imagine what that must have been like.

Three possible explanations .
1. Three sisters rouge wave piling too much water on the deck and snapping her in half on the surface . Three sisters were reported by another captain to be headed for the Fitz .
2. Took on water through unlatched cargo hatches rolled and sank . Pretty much disproved by video evidence .
3. Hit a shoal bottomed out and broke in half . They were not able to find evidence for this . Divers were sent down soon after her disappearance and found no evidence of grounding (no scarring of the bottom) . Video evidence of the Fitz reveals no evidence of grounding on props or bottom .
IMO three sisters rouge wave broke her in half and sent her to the bottom . Also would explain silence (no mayday) it happened fast .

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnaut46 (Post 4024618)

IMHO the reason that everyone remembers the EF is that she was the largest ship to ever sink on the Great Lakes. Same reason people remember the Titanic, google shipwrecks of 1912 HMS Titanic was only one of 214 ships lost that yr.

I agree with you that few people ever remember the little guys, they only remember the Biggest and Baddest. The Edmond Fitzgerald was an AWESOME boat.

I think humans have to have some type of reasoning why the things we create can fail against mother nature. We are top of the food chain how can mother nature beat us…

Having worked overseas most of my adult life, I know this.

You play with guns: You get shot
You play with knives: You get cut
You play on the water: You get wet.

Prayers out to all the people who work, play, and have lost their lives on the H20

I feel most remember the "Fitz" because of it's size and it was the last Great Lake Freighter to be lost at sea. Most memorable. I lived in Alpena,MI. for 20 yrs and frequented Rogers City,MI. as well. The Bradley is talked about locally, but not known like EF.

Just like this wreck isn't talked about on Lake Huron in 1966 Daniel J Morrell 28 of it's 29 crew went down with it in a November gale.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Daniel_J._Morrell

I remember the Fitz every year on November 10th.

http://www.michiganpreserves.org/manitou.htm
We've had the remains of a few wooden hulled ships wash up on the shore near Glen Arbor and Empire, Mi the past winters during storms. That area and the Manitou Passage is a ship graveyard. Back in the 1800's and into the early 1900's most transportation was done by sailing ships running up and down the big lakes coastlines bringing supplies and picking up lumber and later ore.
ed

Quote:

Originally Posted by Interceptor (Post 4024905)

can you imagine what it was like to see that, sailing ships up and down the great lakes. We went out several weeks ago for the battle of 1813 reenactment, there were about nine tall ships out there. When we left we stopped by West Sister Island to swim and looked back and could see all the masts sticking up from the horizon about eight miles away. It was very cool

Trully haunting stuff. That dive article is really interesting.

I live across the road from Georgian bay... I have seen 14 footers(according to enviro Canada) .. The speed that they were moving was astonishing and terrifying. I can only imagine what was lurking out in the middle of Huron.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Interceptor (Post 4024905)

Excellent information for wreck divers , thanks Ed