Vapor da Jequitaia

There are no reliable historical records of this wreck, and one hypothesis is that it was a small tug from the port of Salvador or a river steamer of the Companhia Baiana de Navegação a Vapor, abandoned at the end of its working life and sunk away from the bay's shipping routes. One candidate for its identity is the Vapor Jequitaia, a 28-metre iron steamer mentioned in newspapers from 1874 to 1900. In 1888 it helped tow the steamer Dous de Julho, whose boilers exploded and killed 30 people, and it was later seen out of service in front of the CBN workshops at Jequitaia. 45 m from the stern, on a bearing of 150°, lies another small wreck, the Balsa da Jequitaia: an empty flat-bottomed barge sitting upright as if under way. The marine life is varied, especially small fish, seahorses and sponges. In the Salvador region you can dive all year round, but in winter there tend to be fewer options because of bad weather.