Diving the Ghost Fleet of Truk Lagoon

Posted on April 24, 2008
Filed Under Adventure, Diving, Islands, Oceania

This wreck diving Mecca was first introduced to the world by adventure divers like Jacques Cousteau and Al Giddings. Today, it’s called Chuuk, but most divers still refer to it as Truk Lagoon. By whatever name, it has a fascinating history, incredible marine life and the world’s largest concentration of diveable wrecks.

At over 40 miles across, the “lagoon” within this oceanic atoll is actually huge, and even though parts of it reach depths of 300’, the majority of wrecks lie on shallower reefs. Divers also enjoy surface conditions that are usually calm, year-round warm water temperatures, 50’ – 100’ visibility, and lack of strong currents.

One might think of Truk Lagoon as Japans Pearl Harbor. At it’s zenith, the Japanese Imperial Fleet based here numbered over 1000 ships and support vessels, along with many hundreds of aircraft. But in early 1944, to neutralize this threat, the U.S. Navy commenced “Operation Hailstone” which destroyed the base and sunk more than 50 ships and 100 airplanes.

For over 60 years, the ships and planes downed here have served as graveyards for thousands of Japanese who died during the war and they are respected as such. The government of Micronesia has declared Truk Lagoon a national monument and it is protected by law. Any disturbing of remains or taking artifacts is strictly prohibited.

Many of the shipwrecks in this ghost fleet remain virtually intact and it’s eerie to see the massive cargo holds of some of the supply carriers still containing tanks, trucks, and airplane engines, not to mention Japanese Saki bottles, china plates and other such things.

Likewise appearing to be frozen in time, are dozens of aircraft strewn across the bottom, and in some cases the cockpit has remained intact, providing the pilots final resting place. 

But over the intervening years these machines of war have been slowly transformed into spectacular reefs teeming with a diversity of marine life. What were initially watery graves and scenes of destruction have morphed into places resplendent with vivid corals and sponges, along with colorful reef fish, and larger pelagic species.  

Truk is an immense atoll that’s crowned with natural beauty. The surrounding outer barrier reef is accented with tiny idyllic islets that are mere spits of sand with a couple coconut palms. There are several volcanic island groups in the central lagoon which are mostly undeveloped. One of these is the capital island of Weno which has the only airport and lodging for tourists.

The land area of Chuuk State is only about 77 square miles, but it’s part of an island nation that spans 1,158,306 square miles of the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Chuuk along with Yap, Pohnpei, and Kosrae, make up the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), which itself is part of the Caroline Islands.

Getting there: Truk Lagoon lies about 750 miles north of Papua New Guinea, 600 miles southeast of Guam and 3,300 miles southwest of Hawaii. Continental Micronesia makes several flights per week between the main population center of Weno, and Guam. There are daily connections to Guam from Tokyo and the United States, and a couple flights a week from Cairns.

Photo credits: Wreck Dives: wjsiv; Map: Google Maps

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