Grand Cayman · Cayman Islands · Wreck
Oro Verde
A storm-scattered banana boat that grew into a fish-filled reef
Area photo: c&rdunn · CC BY-SA 2.0
Oro Verde is the broken-up wreck of a former banana freighter lying in 18 m (60 ft) off Seven Mile Beach. Storms have spread the wreckage across a wide patch of seabed, and the scattered plates and machinery now shelter morays, jacks, snapper and parrotfish, which makes it a relaxed shallow wreck for newer divers.
Also known as Oro Verde Wreck.
Where it is and how deep
19.3382° N, 81.3904° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Hurricanes and storms have dispersed the wreckage over the years, so the site has two moorings and a wide area to explore at 18 m (60 ft). The remains are a disintegrating mass rather than an intact hull, and with nothing to enter this is not a penetration dive.
Life gathers around the debris field: several species of moray eel hide in the plating, while schooling chubs, horse-eye jacks, snapper, goatfish, blue tangs and midnight blue parrotfish circle the wreckage looking for a meal, with the occasional barracuda hanging nearby.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Oro Verde
- Type
- Former US Army transport, later a banana boat
- Sunk
- 1980
- Cause
- Ran aground on the reef in 1976, later moved into shallower water and sunk on purpose
- Lies
- Broken up and scattered across the sand at 18 m (60 ft) off Seven Mile Beach
The ship started life as a US Army transport, was converted into an environmental research vessel and was then reborn as a banana boat, spending 10 years hauling bananas between Ecuador and Miami. In 1976 it ran aground on the reef surrounding Grand Cayman, allegedly after a mutiny by a crew who wanted part of the illicit profits. It sat on the reef until 1980, when the local dive community adopted the wreck, moved it into shallower water and sank it as an artificial reef.
Marine life and season
- Trevally & jacks
- Barracuda
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows Grand Cayman: December to April is drier and calm enough for the exposed south side; August to October is hurricane season, and the rain peaks in October.
Dive videos
Oro Verde wreck, Grand Cayman · Diver Diary on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Can the Oro Verde wreck be dived from shore?+
Yes, though it takes a long surface swim from Seven Mile Beach, so most divers visit it as a shallow second boat dive instead.
Sources
- Dive Site: Oro Verde, Grand Cayman — Scuba Diver Life
- Diving sites Cayman Islands — Dive The World
- Oro Verde (Wreck) — ScubaGo
More dive sites in Grand Cayman
Reef
Massive sponges on the drop at 21 m (70 ft)
Wall
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Cave & cavern
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Wall
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Cave & cavern
Coral chimneys that fill with silversides in high summer
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Wall
An elephant sculpture on a ledge at 26 m (85 ft)
Similar dives elsewhere
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