YO-257 & San Pedro

The YO-257 and San Pedro constitute a celebrated two-wreck dive site off Oahu's south shore — a pairing that allows advanced divers to explore two distinct artificial reef structures on a single guided excursion, experiencing the contrast between the well-known fuel barge and the lesser-cited San Pedro, a vessel that rests in close proximity and offers its own character and marine life community. The YO-257, a 175-foot World War II-era Navy fuel oil barge sunk in 1989, has been described extensively in its own right as one of Oahu's premier wreck dives — heavily encrusted with hard and soft corals, densely populated with bluestripe snapper, whitetip reef sharks, and Hawaiian green sea turtles, and accessible to advanced divers at approximately 95 to 100 feet. The San Pedro adds a second structure to explore, extending the dive and providing a contrasting experience in terms of hull form, encrustation character, and fish distribution. The two wrecks are close enough to allow divers to transit between them within a single dive while managing air and decompression thoughtfully. Hawaiian green sea turtles appear throughout the combined site, often resting on deck coral or drifting slowly between the two structures. Whitemouth and snowflake moray eels are abundant in the crevices of both hulls. The sandy bottom connecting the wrecks is home to garden eels swaying in formation and peacock flounders lying flush with the sediment in near-perfect camouflage. The combined dive site is consistently listed among the top wreck diving experiences in Hawaii, and the two-wreck format provides exceptional value for advanced divers seeking to maximize their bottom-time exploration. Boat access from Honolulu operators, with trips typically paired with another south shore site as a two-tank outing.