Shinkoku Maru

The Shinkoku Maru is Chuuk Lagoon's most spectacularly encrusted wreck — a 163-meter Japanese Navy oil tanker sunk during Operation Hailstone on February 17, 1944, resting upright at 38 meters with her deck at 15 meters. Eighty years of Pacific waters have transformed her into one of the most beautifully overgrown wrecks in the world, her hull so densely covered with soft corals, gorgonian fans, and sponges that many divers describe her as a living reef rather than a shipwreck. The wreck's intact superstructure and massive tanker hull make for extraordinary diving. Divers explore the bridge, the vast upper decks, and the engine room, with the signature 6-inch deck guns at bow and stern providing dramatic photographic moments. Her size allows extended dive profiles — a single dive can cover only a fraction of her length. Penetration-certified divers explore the bridge, radio room, engine room, and enormous oil storage compartments, where shafts of sunlight through the upper openings create cathedral-like effects. The marine life on the Shinkoku Maru is the richest of any Chuuk wreck. The dense coral encrustation supports a complete reef ecosystem — clownfish in anemones, nudibranchs of dozens of species, pygmy seahorses on the gorgonian fans, and octopus in every crevice. Resident reef sharks, barracuda schools, and Napoleon wrasse cruise the hull, and night dives reveal feeding lionfish, basket stars, and the occasional hawksbill turtle sleeping in the wreckage. The Shinkoku Maru is Advanced Open Water diving due to the 38-meter depth, with Wreck and Nitrox certifications strongly recommended. Reached by liveaboard or from the few shore-based operators on Weno (Chuuk State, Federated States of Micronesia), accessed via international flights through Guam. Visibility 15-30 meters, water temperatures 28-30°C year-round. Best conditions December through April.