Nekton

Shipwreck junkies got their fix in Palau.

This summer the legendary islands were host to a "wrexpedition", a unique event that saw divers from 9 different countries converge on   former war anchorages   in Palau's Rock Islands. Normally, Palau isn't thought   of   as    Micronesia's   shipwreck haven. In truth, there are more ships sunk here than in the famous Truk Lagoon. While some WWII casualties have been salvaged and others are located in the Rock Islands, which aren't always known for their great visibility, the wrecks are still full of marine life and old artifacts.

So this   year   old   pros and new hands converged to see the history beneath the waves of   this "Lost Fleet of   the Rock Islands".

The President of the   Republic of Palau who joined the first day of diving opened the     Wrexpedition.    President    Thomas

"Preserve the best and improve the rest" were his words of contribution for the opening.

The internationally known Palauan diver, Francis Toribiong, who discovered many of the wrecks, the second annual gathering of this event, led this Wrexpedition. Noted author and wreck diver Dan Bailey, who wrote the book Shipwrecks of Palau, gave daily seminars and accompanied groups throughout the week. The organizer, Navot Bornovski, the proprietor of Fish 'N Fins, used a unique tool to brief divers. He has developed a computer program called D Log. This special program allows a virtual dive on the more famous of the wrecks. Thus briefings were both thorough and entertaining as divers were taken on a virtual pre-dive of the shipwrecks.

The international group dove more than 15 ship and seaplane wrecks in a week's time days, including the Amatsu Maru, a 502 foot Japanese tanker, that is one of the biggest WWII wrecks sunk in Micronesia.

Three daily dives were followed by a night of immersion into the history of Palau's WWII history. Bailey, Bornovski and Toribiong hosted both the divers and the local community in Palau who attended evening lectures, slide shows, rare WWII videos and documentaries about the shipwrecks and war battles. This included the story of the three-
month deadly skirmish that finally led to the U.S. taking of the southern island of Peleliu.

Japan took control of the Micronesian islands in 1914 and ruled them until the end of World War II. They built the islands in the Palau archipelago into progressive and productiv e communities that specialized in mining, agriculture and fisheries. When the war came, the islands were also heavily fortified militarily. The islands of Angaur and Peleliu were the settings for fierce battles; the one on tiny Peleliu lasting for three bloody months.

Months prior to Peleliu, a two-day air strike on March 30 and 31, 1944, designated as Desecrate One, sunk a major block of the Japanese fleet. Most were freighters, but small destroyers and many planes went down in the battles. Seaplanes were sunk at their moorings or trying to escape.

Many war remnants still exist today on the huge island of Babeldaob, in Koror town, on Peleliu and in the far south in Angaur's jungles. Koror was wiped out after the U.S. forces took control of the islands. The job of rebuilding the intricate and productive Japanese infrastructure continues today. The older people of Palau still speak Japanese and sing Japanese songs when reminiscing about the peaceful days of their youth prior to the war. For the diver, weeks and even months of exploration above and below the sea are found here. A week of Palau wreck diving just opens doors to more the exploration that can be very addictive.

Off the tip of Angaur there's the most recent find, a United States Navy ship the USS Perry. It is a deep, technical dive but unique as a wreck dive. In the upper reaches of Velasco Reef, 100 miles north at the far tip of the archipelago, is the ship sunk by U.S. President George Bush Sr. and found by Bailey in the early 1990s. In between are ships with great marine creatures in odd and unusual diving setting. Some are located in channels, others in river outfalls, others in secluded Rock Island coves and there are quite few around the main harbor.

Most ships in Palau are in relatively shallow water at 45 to 120 feet. But the water density still hides their easy location. Dubbed The Lost Fleet of the Rock Islands, this bunch of ships still enjoys very little diver pressure today.

Ships that are well-known include Teshio Maru. This ship sunk while underway. It now rests on its starboard side. It is one of the fishiest wrecks in Palau, with blackbar barracuda schools coming in and also striped skipjack shoals. The engine room was blasted by salvagers but is open.

The Jake floatplane, an Aichi E13A or Jake type reconnaissance seaplane, is one of the most intact plane wrecks in Micronesia. It sits mostly upright with wings and one float still intact in shallow water not too far off the Meyuns seaplane ramp.

Ryuko Maru is near the city, almost a snorkel from the Palau Pacific Resort along the northwestern shore of Ngargol Island. Covered in black coral trees and full of marine life like skipjacks and lionfish, the ship is a pleasant overswim and there are parts that can be easily penetrated.

From the enthusiasm generated by the outings, Fish N' Fins plans to host another Wrexpedition on March 26 to April 1, 2004, is going to be a bigger event as it will mark the 60th anniversary of the first attack of WWII in Palau, operation "Desecrate 1". Veterans from the U.S. and Japan who fought in Palau will come to be part of this event and reminisce. John Bennett, world record holder of the deepest dive ever done, will be leading a group of technical divers and will be diving the deeper wrecks and the USS Perry that was discovered in 2000.

There's a lot of history under the waves here in this large and diverse archipelago. And there are still ships to be found. Next year's wrexpedition may just be the event that puts a new discovery on the books.

Tim Rock attended the journalism program at the University of Nebraska - Omaha and has been a professional broadcast and print photojournalist for 30 years. The majority of those years have been spent in the Western and Indo Pacific reporting on environmental and conservation issues. He has won the prestigious Excellence in the Use of Photography from the Society of Publisher's in Asia. He also lists many other awards for documentaries, television shows including producer of ACE award finalist Aquaquest Micronesia, photography and writing. He works as a correspondent for numerous Pacific Rim magazines. He is the author of 6 Lonely Planet/Pisces series guides including The Diving and Snorkeling Guides to South Africa and Mozambique, Chuuk-Pohnpei-Kosrae, Palau, Bali & Lombok, Guam & Yap