Cozumel · Mexico · Wreck · Artificial reef
C-53 Felipe Xicoténcatl
A hull that was placed rather than lost, upright at 25 m
Photo: Paul Harrison · CC BY-SA 4.0
A former US Navy minesweeper, later the Mexican Navy's ARM General Felipe Xicoténcatl, sunk off Cozumel in 1999 as a donation to the island's underwater park. She sits upright in about 82 feet, 25 metres, just offshore from Chankanaab Park, 56 metres of hull anchored down with concrete blocks and still standing after Hurricane Wilma pushed her across the sand in 2005.
Also known as Wreck of the C-53, Felipe Xicotencatl, USS Scuffle.
Where it is and how deep
20.4467° N, 86.9989° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The ship stands upright on the sand in about 82 feet, 25 metres, of water just offshore from Chankanaab Park on the sheltered west side of the island. At 56 metres long she is a one-dive wreck rather than a wreck you come back to for a different section: the pattern is to drop onto the hull, work its length at depth while the no-stop clock is generous, then finish shallower along the upper structure.
She was placed here deliberately, donated to the Cozumel underwater park and sunk in 1999, and she has been held down since by a series of massive concrete blocks. That work did its job. On 22 October 2005 Hurricane Wilma pushed her roughly 30 m (100 ft) north of her original position, and she came through the storm still vertical and stable enough to keep diving. The steel has been colonised since and now carries the growth and the marine life that came with it.
The wreck
- Vessel
- ARM General Felipe Xicoténcatl (C-53)
- Type
- Admirable-class minesweeper
- Length
- 56 m (184 ft)
- Built
- 1943
- Sunk
- 1999
- Cause
- Scuttled as a dive site, donated to the Cozumel underwater park
- Lies
- Upright in about 25 m of water off Chankanaab Park, stabilised with concrete blocks
She was laid down on 4 May 1943 and launched on 8 August 1943 by Winslow Marine Railway and Shipbuilding in Seattle, commissioned on 2 May 1944, and served the US Navy until she was decommissioned on 19 June 1946. Transferred to the Mexican Navy on 1 October 1962 as ARM DM-05, she was renamed ARM General Felipe Xicoténcatl (C-53) in 1994, donated to the Cozumel underwater park and sunk in 1999, and struck from the Mexican Navy rolls in 2000.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good |
Season follows Cozumel: January–April is prime with December close behind; lighter trades keep the leeward side calm, though winter nortes can shut the port for a day. Peak hurricane risk falls in September and October.
Know before you go
- The hull sits at around 25 metres, so no-stop time is limited and it is easy to use all of it swimming the length of the ship before turning back.
- Going inside is overhead diving whatever the state of the openings, and needs wreck training, a light and a line rather than curiosity.
Dive videos
C53 Sunken Wreck Cozumel · Fly by Night Adventure Films on YouTube
CRAWL INSIDE The C-53 Wreck - 2nd & 3rd Level Decks - Cozumel MX - Most Complete Review · WaterTrek 360 on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is the C-53 wreck?+
She lies upright on the sand in about 25 metres of water just offshore from Chankanaab Park, which puts the deepest part of the dive on the bottom alongside the hull. It is an Advanced-level profile rather than an Open Water one.
What ship is the Felipe Xicoténcatl?+
She was launched in Seattle in 1943 as the US Navy Admirable-class minesweeper USS Scuffle, transferred to the Mexican Navy in 1962, renamed ARM General Felipe Xicoténcatl (C-53) in 1994, and sunk off Cozumel in 1999 as a donation to the island's underwater park.
Sources
- USS Scuffle — Wikipedia
- Diving in Mexico — Wikivoyage
- Cozumel — Wikivoyage
- Parque Natural Laguna de Chankanaab — OpenStreetMap
- Wreck C-53 (OpenStreetMap node 663869368) — OpenStreetMap
Photo credits
- Encrusted superstructure of the sunken minesweeper Felipe Xicoténcatl by Paul Harrison, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In The Logbook
- Ships sunk on purpose, and where to dive themWrecks · 14 min read
- Your first wreck dive: what to expect and whereFirst dives · 6 min read
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