Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
108
Wreck of the 10 Sails
On February 8, 1794, Captain William Martin was steering a
lead ship, HMS
Convert,
when it hit a r eef. The captain fired
a cannon to signal a fleet of other mer chant vessels about
the tr eacherous r eefs that la y ahead . The captains of the
other ships mistook the signal for a warning of an impend-
ing pirate attack. One vessel after another in the c onvoy of
58 mer chants ships , most of them squar e-rigged sailing
vessels bound for Europe, met the same fate as the
Convert
in the rough, pitch-black seas.
In all , 10 ships w ere wr ecked that disastr ous night. By
some miracle , villagers of the East End of Grand C ayman
managed to save all 400 or so sailors and offic ers, bringing
them ashore in canoes . Four of the ships w ere eventually
salvaged, while the other vessels sank to the bottom of the
sea. The ships' cannons were recovered and sent to England
during World War II as scrap.
In the little c ommunity of Gun Ba y in the East End , a
monument can be seen c ommemorating that trag ic mari-
time event. Queen Elizabeth II dedicat ed the statue on her
visit to Grand C ayman in 1994. A local legend—untrue —
maintains that King George II gave the Caymanians tax-free
status because of their heroic rescue. If you'd like to explore
this ship wreck sit e, it is of ten included in the diving pr o-
grams offered by
Ocean Frontiers
(p. 110).
5
of the comprehensive guidebooks. The best one we've seen is a paper-
back,
The Dive Sites of the C ayman Islands: Over 260 Top Dive and
Snorkel Sites
by Lawson Wood.
It's easy to div e close to shor e, so boats ar en't necessary, although
plenty of diving boats are available. For certain excursions, we recom-
mend a trip with a qualified dive master. Many dive shops offer rent-
als, but they won't rent you scuba gear or supply air unless y ou have
a card from one of the international diving schools, such as NAUI or
PADI. H otels also r ent diving equipment to their guests who ar
e
certified divers, and will arrange snorkeling and scuba-diving trips.
Universally r egarded as the most up-to-date and best-equipped
watersports facility in the Cayman Islands,
Red Sail Sports
maintains
its administrativ e headquar ters at Coconut P lace (P.O. Bo x 31473,
