Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Southern California → Los Angeles Area → Avalon Wreck Dive

Location: Palos Verdes Peninsula, South of Los Angeles

Dive Depth: 60 – 90 feet

Time Required: half a day

Red Tape/Notes: Penetration is limited and not advised; wreck can be difficult to find without exact coordinates. Additional info available at California Wreck Divers. We visited the site on a trip with Channel Islands Dive Adventures, a great group that puts together dive trips to unique and less-visited locations along the Southern California coast. Visit their website and see their dive calendar here.

What’s Nearby?: Crystal Cove State Park, Wayfarers Chapel, Palos Verdes Diving

Built in 1891, the Avalon started life as the S.S. Virginia (269′ long and 38′ wide) and carried passengers between Chicago and Milwaukee, before being briefly requisitioned for use by the Navy in World War I before being sold to William Wrigley, who outfitted her in grand style to carry passengers to and from Catalina Island and renamed her “Avalon”. She had staterooms, cabins with private baths, mahogany-trimmed mirrors, and could carry up to 3,000 people. She was requisitioned again during World War II, and was returned to her owners before being retired in 1951, sold for scrap, gutted by a fire, and finally foundering during a storm after her anchor chain broke, where she now rests in 70′ of water. Visibility is generally mediocre, but the wreck is still fun to dive and there are some cool remnants visible, like the crane and boom on her stern and some pieces of machinery.

Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Southern California → Los Angeles Area → Avalon Wreck Dive