Wreck Trek

About this dive site

Explore the water around Florida

The Zion Train dive site is a series of three wrecks that are home to some fantastic big animals. As divers approach the Zion Train, a small freighter listing to its port side with its bow broken off by a hurricane, the resident Goliath groupers slowly try to find an out-of-the-way corner in which to hide. The wreck, being wide open, allows divers to get a good up-close look at the Goliaths even as they try to hide. In late summer, when Goliath groupers aggregate; there may be as many as six or seven of these giant fish on the Zion Train alone. Just to the east of the Zion Train is a pile of concrete beams. In January and February these beams become the spectator area at 80 feet to view the Lemon sharks. There may be as many as two dozen of these large, impressive sharks circling out into the sand and returning again for another go-around. They make the reef sharks appear very small. Drifting north from the Zion Train, divers come across the Miss Jenny, an upside-down barge that is also home to Goliath groupers as well as Gag groupers and Black groupers. On a 340 degree course from the Miss Jenny (a course clearly marked by rebar stuck in the ground every thirty feet or so) is the Esso Bonaire, the largest of the three wrecks. She sits upright in 90 feet of water with her deck being at about 75 feet. Her holds are wide open and easily investigated. The cabin area at the stern is safely penetrated as long as the diver does not go into the lower areas. Goliath groupers of enormous size can be seen here peeking out of the darkness at the bubble-blowers. Occasionally, Spotted Eagle ray and Cobia visit the wrecks presenting the divers with an encore after the Goliath groupers. Drifting away from the wrecks on the ascent, divers can only be amazed at the incredible spectacle they have just experienced, all here in Southern Florida.