The attraction of coastal North Carolina doesn’t stop at the beaches.
With artificial reefs, sunken shipwrecks, a rich maritime history and a variety of marine life, the waters off North Carolina’s coast are a big draw for scuba divers.
“There are a lot of World War II wrecks, Civil Wars wrecks, quite a few artificial reefs. There’s a lot going on off our coast,” said Martha Jenkins, who owns New River Dive Center with her husband, Gary.
They aren’t surprised by North Carolina’s high rankings in the annual Top 100 Readers Choice Award in put out by Scuba Diving Magazine.
At their full service shop they see interest in scuba diving from all ages, from the Marines who stop by from nearby Camp Lejeune to the high school students who have done their senior projects on the topic.
Spear fishing and underwater photography are enjoyed, as well as diving on the many wreck sites.
“Scuba diving is a big part of North Carolina,” she said.
The Top 100 reader’s poll includes rankings in 11 different categories and by geographic area.
For North America, North Carolina ranks in the top 5 in all but two of the categories. It was ranked No. 1 for best wreck diving, best advanced diving, best big animals, best marine environment and best overall diving, topping locations such as the Florida Keys, California and British Columbia.
For best overall destination, North Carolina was second behind Northern California. The state came in behind Southern California and British Columbia under category of Best Value for Diving Dollar.
In a separate Top 100 Gold List, North Carolina and Carteret County were also recognized by the magazine’s readers.
That list ranks operators, resorts, underwater experiences, dive bars and more based on total number of responses, regardless of categories.
Two area dive shops made the list.
Discovery Diving in Beaufort ranked No. 68 and Olympus Dive Shop in Morehead City came in at No. 94.
Several dive wrecks and experiences off the coast also made the Gold List.
The German submarine U-352 ranked No. 18 and the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Spar, sunk in 2004 as a diver-friendly wreck, followed at No. 67.
The tiger sharks found off North Carolina made the list at No. 76 as a best animal encounter.
David Osborne of Discovery Diving said the shop has been in operation since 1976 and it brings experience and quality customer service for those diving off North Carolina’s coast.
He said the large number of wrecks and the warm waters of the Gulf Stream are ideal for a quality diving experience. Wreck diving, the sand tigers and other big animals, as well as spear fishing, are the big diving experiences in North Carolina.
And the rankings in the national magazine are good for North Carolina as well as the diving industry, Osborne said.
“It’s going to get information out about North Carolina, and that brings in tourism,” he said.