William H. Wolf (Wrack) - Great Lakes
The William H. Wolf, often called the Wrack, isn't your typical Great Lakes wreck. We love it because it’s a living museum, a stark skeleton of timber and iron that the lake has completely reclaimed. Dropping down, the visibility in Lake Michigan can be a bit of a lottery, but on a good day, the structure emerges from the green gloom, surprisingly intact in places. You feel the cold embrace of the freshwater, a constant reminder of the lake’s power. Our favourite part is poking around the bow section, where the timbers are split and twisted, creating nooks that are perfect homes for massive schools of alewife. They swarm around you, a shimmering curtain of silver. We’ve seen hefty common carp here, gliding slowly over the decaying hull, and the occasional walleye peeking out from under a fallen beam. The sheer amount of fish life, especially the rainbow smelt and yellow perch, is what truly makes this site. It’s a great wreck for divers who appreciate history and don't mind the chill, offering a chance to see how nature reclaims even the most stubborn human creations.
- Location
- Great Lakes, United States, North America
- Coordinates
- 42.691220, -82.495810
- Type
- wreck
Nearby Dive Sites in Great Lakes
- Alexander Reef (reef)
- A. R. Colborn and Crane (Wrack) (wreck)
- Bermuda Wreck - 10-30m (wreck)
- Blue Water Lake
- Boulton Reef (reef)
- Car Bodies (wreck)
- Cedarville (Wrack) (wreck)
- Depot beach
- Ebar Ward
- Elmwood Wreck (wreck)
- Glenlyon
- Grand Reef (reef)
- Higgins lake
- Ironsides Reef (reef)
- Ironsides Wreck - 25-40m (wreck)
Nearest Dive Centres to William H. Wolf (Wrack)
- Aqua Center - ["PADI"]
- Aqua Diving School - PADI, SDI
- Azimuth Scuba
- Below H2O
- Diventures
- DiVentures
Marine Life in Great Lakes
Home to 30 recorded species including 27 reef fish, 2 other, 1 sea snails & nudibranchs.
Notable Species
- Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) - Reef Fish
- Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus mordax) - Reef Fish
- Slimy Sculpin (Cottus cognatus) - Reef Fish
- Yellow Perch (Perca flavescens) - Reef Fish
- Spottail Shiner (Notropis hudsonius) - Reef Fish
- Nine-spined Stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) - Reef Fish
- Lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) - Reef Fish
- Cisco (Coregonus artedi) - Reef Fish
- White Sucker (Catostomus commersonii) - Reef Fish
- Common carp (Cyprinus carpio) - Reef Fish
- Jasper Longnose Sucker (Catostomus catostomus) - Reef Fish
- American Gizzard Shad (Dorosoma cepedianum) - Reef Fish
- burbot (Lota lota) - Reef Fish
- Mottled Sculpin (Cottus bairdii) - Reef Fish
- Chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) - Reef Fish
- coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) - Reef Fish
- Sea Trout (Salmo trutta) - Reef Fish
- sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)
- Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) - Reef Fish
- Banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus) - Reef Fish