George T. Davie

One cold April day in 1945, on a routine coal cargo haul, the weather suddenly got rough, forcing the 47 year old George T. Davie to capsize and sink into Lake Ontario. With cargo holds 12 and a half feet deep, a width of 35 feet and stretching 177 feet long, this ship was enormous then and is just as impressive now as a dive site.

Though not on the list of most popular dive sites (yet) of the Kingston area, the wreck of the George T. Davie is attracting a greater number of visitors these days as word spreads about the unique features this ship has to offer the advanced diver. At a depth of about 94 feet, this giant steel-hulled, freighter barge boasts an intact lifeboat and a variety of other gems that you just don't see at most other sites. You can also penetrate the wreck and swim from hatch to hatch.

The wheel, though covered (like the rest of the ship and most other things in Ontario waters) with zebra mussels is intact, as well as its rudder and anchor on the bow. Also, you can check out the pilot house, a boiler of sorts and a large unloading crane that is lying on its side, in the silt just a metre or so away on the starboard side of the George T. There are other artifacts scattered about the dive site to find too!

Access to the site is by boat only. The SOS buoy/line leads to the mid-point of ship on the starboard side.Visibility can vary significantly (especially when a larger number of divers is on-site). Typical of Lake Ontario, the water can also be a bit chilly!