Lake Huron
Cornelia B. Windiate -
Alpena/Presque Isle area
Depth 165 to 190 ft
During my long drives to the various dive
sites over the last hew years, I often wondered how my ideal schooner wreck would look
like. What would it have to have so that I'd fall in love at the first sight and would
want to return again and again? Some wrecks like St. James in Lake Erie came close, but it
was when i saw Windiate that i realized i found my ultimate wreck.
 
Windiate was a three-masted schooner with
the dimensions designed to fit into the locks of second Welland canal – she was just
136 ft long and 26 ft wide. She was only 2 years old when she failed to make an appearance
at her final destination on her last run of the season between Chicagoand Buffalo and was
given up for lost. Since no records existed of Windiate passing through the Straits of
Mackinac, she was thought to be lost in Lake Michigan for almost 100 years until she was
discovered in almost 200 ft of water in Lake Huron’s famous
“schooner valley” stretching few miles offshore between Rogers City and Alpena,
Michigan.
Today, Windiate is probably the most
beautiful wreck in the Great Lakes and that beauty is rivaled by her intactness. She is
sitting uptight with the bottom in 190 ft of water and deck at about 165ft. Descending to
the wreck, the first thing that comes into the view at about 100 ft depth is a foremast
with the crosstree still there. Few feet below crosstrees, is an item that makes this
wreck absolutely unique – a yardarm for a square rigged sail attached perpendicular
to the mast. Remains of rigging are still attached to the mast and cascade to the deck
below
On a good visibility day, a visiting
diver might see the bottom half of the main mast that is still standing and from there,
what’s left of mizzen mast might come into view. Descending further to the wreck and
starting at the bow, you can not help by notice that the main windlass is almost covered
by various wires, ropes, pulleys and other items that were used to set up sails.
The bowsprit is broken right at the point
where it was attached to the bow, likely during sinking, and that is pretty much the only
part of the wreck that is not pristinely intact. Both large wood-stocked anchors are still
resting in their stowing places. Interestingly, there is a chain that is attached to the
windlass, but then runs alongside the wreck in couple long loops – was that a
standard operating procedure before deploying the anchors?
   
Moving further aft, you would pass the
bottoms of the fore and main masts, capstan and the centerboard winch. The masts all still
have intact D-shaped fife rails and lots and lots of mast hoops and belaying pins
    
Windiate carried cargo of wheat on her
final voyage, but the cargo is hard to see since all cargo openings are still covered by
intact hatch covers. The tops of the masts, the cross trees for main and mizzen mast lay
all over the deck. The intact railing runs along both sides of the ship with deadeyes and
various blocks still in place.
Aft of the main mast, the intact cabin
slowly comes into view. The forward facing doors and windows are gone, but the side
windows on the port side still have sliding window covers as well as metal bars. Last mast
comes out of the top of the cabin. On the port side right on the side of the cabin is the
reason why this wreck was so easy to identify – the full name is still visible on the
top of the outside. In the pictures below, the name is on the side in the zebra mussles
clear area
   
At the stern, the steering mechanism was
tilted severely resulting in the wheel being almost horizontal to the deck level. On the
starboard side at the stern and near the bottom is amazingly intact yawl boat. On a good
visibility day, one can look back towards the stern and see the elegant transom and the
rudder turned at 90 degree angle. The transom also sports some decorative stars
    
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