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desert shipwreck

7K views 16 replies 9 participants last post by  kudu 
#1 ·
many years ago when i was a youngster, my dad used to bring home copies of sea breezes for me to read, and i seem to remember a story of a wreck found 100 miles or so inland when the sea receded (south america?) this ship was built as a sailing ship, then converted to steam, possibly put back into sail, then as a motor ship, and the iron hull supposedly sailed for something like 130 years. is senile decay setting in? or am i remembering this tale half correctly? regards, john.
 
#4 ·
This one probably fits the story a bit better. The steel barque Marjory Glen.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uedKr8HpDa0/TUVx2QQB3DI/AAAAAAAAC-0/vvudWOjIKx8/s1600/img754.jpg
She was put ashore on the South American coast in 1911, on fire. Over the years, the sea receded and left the ship high and dry. A road has been built out to her and she is now a tourist attraction.
But she was never a steamship and never went into service again after the stranding. Neither is she 100 miles from the sea, but quite a distance. In some views, the sea can be seen in the background. I built a model of this ship recently, after coming across the original plans.
Bob
 

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#5 ·
130 year old ship? There was a South Australian ketch working in the gulfs which was over 100 years old but she was like the 100 year old axe ( two new heads and 3 new handles) having been cut and shut, jumboised, shortened , lenghtened and re-engined so often there was nothing left of the original(apart from her register). May have been the Nelcebee but I think it was another older one.
 
#7 · (Edited)
The bits of the Atacama I am familiar with ( behind Iquique ( see piccy) and Antofagasta) are at a pretty high altitude and it rises pretty much straight up out of the sea.

In about 1960 the big Chilean earthquake dropped the level of the land quite a bit around Valdivia and down near the river entrance by Corral there a still a few ships in 'interesting' positions....
 

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#9 · (Edited)
This can be the wreck of the USS Wateree which was dragged about three (3) Kilometers inland lying close to El Chuño hill, El Chinchorro beach due to a terrible earthquake and tsunami which affected the city and port of Arica, Chile the 13th of August of 1868.

Nowadays it can still be seen the boilers of this ship which are in good condition and declared national monument.

Regards

Tomi.
 

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#14 ·
There is a ship ashore in the jungle near Rabaul (PNG) that was washed ashore during a volcanic eruption in the late 1800s or early 1900s that may fit the bill. Don't know if it's still visible after the 1994 eruption though.
 
#16 ·
I seem to recall reading an article when I was at sea.It mentioned a sailing vessel in the dessert north of the gulf of California.It was,I think,Spanish.Spanish explorers in the late 18th century were supposed to have found it.This maybe is where the "Mohave wreck"idea came from.
 
#17 ·
Another idea about the "desert shipwreck".I remember reading in the National Geographic magazine,an article about the shrinking of the Aral Sea,in central Asia,due to the damming of the Amu Daryia river,for agricultural reasons.This left many fishing vessels(some of quite substantial size,and steel construction),high and dry,many miles from water.These I think became tourist attractions.The area around the vessels was desert.
 
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