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One dark brown moray eel covered in small white spots, mouth open, peering out from a crevice in a rock crusted with algae — Paraty

Paraty · Brazil · Wreck

Naufrágio Paulista

Paraty's shipwreck dive, off the Cajaíba point

Area photo: manoellemos · CC BY-SA 2.0

The Naufrágio Paulista is the wreck of the Paulista, a 60 m ship that sank in 1913 at Ponta da Cajaíba, and one of the more interesting dives around Paraty. The site reaches 28 m. There are few openings into the hull and visibility in the area can be poor, but the ship is worth seeing from the outside.

Also known as Paulista, Cajaíba.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Naufrágio Paulista: typical dive to 28 m (to 92 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit28 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

23.2245° S, 44.5582° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

The Paulista lies at Ponta da Cajaíba, and the dive site there reaches a maximum depth of 28 m. The ship went down in 1913 and is 60 m long. It counts among the more interesting dive sites around Paraty, and the dive is spent along the outside of the hull rather than inside it.

There are few openings to enter the ship, and the visibility at Cajaíba can be poor, so the dive is mostly a tour of the exterior. Even from outside, the view of the hull is impressive. The depth and the visibility make it a dive for experienced divers with deep training rather than one for newly certified divers.

The wreck

Vessel
Paulista
Type
Ship
Length
60 m (197 ft)
Sunk
1913
Cause
Sank in 1913; the cause is not published
Lies
At Ponta da Cajaíba, at a site with a maximum depth of 28 m

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for Naufrágio Paulista
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
FairGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGood

Season follows Paraty: No month is reported as best: the bay's islands have calm, clear water all year, and January is the wettest month with about 19 rain days.

Know before you go

  • Visibility in the Cajaíba area can be poor; divers stay close to their buddy and the hull.
  • The site reaches 28 m, so no-decompression time is short; the dive is planned for depth.

Questions divers ask

How deep is the Paulista wreck in Paraty?+

The dive site at Ponta da Cajaíba, where the 60 m Paulista lies, reaches a maximum depth of 28 m.

Sources

  1. Conheça os 7 principais pontos de mergulho em Paraty — Evidive
  2. Pontos de mergulho em Paraty (Evidive, Wayback) — Evidive

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Ilha dos Cocos

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Ilha dos Meros

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Ilha dos Ratos

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Pinnacle

Laje dos Meros

One rock to follow from the surface down to 22 m

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