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Caledonia ll comes to rest on the Coast

Caledonia II comes to rest on the Coast

After circumnavigating the world’s oceans, searching for treasure and being abandoned and set adrift during a severe storm, the Caledonia II has come to rest at Whittakers oceanfront community in Pender Harbour.

Developer Peter Ruben is the owner of the vessel and a resident of Whittakers.

During a media briefing on Monday at the site, Ruben said it was time for the ship to “retire in honour” after all its adventures. He plans on giving the ship gentle duty such as taking guests at Rockwater Resort for sunset cruises.

The 47-foot sailing vessel has had quite the adventure since being purchased by Ruben three years ago. The boat, with its state of the art magnetometer, was used to search for the French privateer Maurepas in the San Blas Islands off the Panamanian coast. The Maurepas is recorded to be holding over $60 million in gold and silver. The area is a semi-autonomous state of the Kuna Indians through a 1925 treaty with Panama.

Ruben says the first time they approached the Kunas about searching the area they were turned down.

“These people are very traditional,” said Ruben. “The women still wear their traditional dress and everyone travels by dugout canoe. There are no modern boats.”

Ruben was able to communicate with the people through a Kuna school-teacher who spoke English. One of the partners in the expedition was a Scottish doctor who had studied the history of a Scottish settlement in the area. They had access to a diary that told the story of the settlement where nearly 5,000 people died of disease. Using their special equipment, they found the ship with clues from the diary. The Scots tried to rescue the ship when it was trapped by a storm when leaving the bank and sank. The diary documents exact area.

The area had been searched before in 1978, said Ruben, but the technology was not as good. There was a great leap in technology in the ‘90s and they were able to take readings of subtle disturbances in the earth’s magnetic field from the ferrous metals on the ship from such items as cannons.

They are now waiting an answer to their proposal to the Kuna Congress regarding salvaging the sip, which will be the next stage. Although they have not seen the ship (it is buried under three metres of slit and sand), they are almost positive that it is the Maurepas from the diary descriptions.

The vessel’s final adventure was on its return trip when it encountered a severe storm about 480 kilometres out of Bermuda. The five crew members had to abandon ship and were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard. The Caledonia II was adrift for a week when it was found by a tanker and returned to the States.

Ruben and partner Kevin Toth own Rockwater Properties. The company owns and manages both Rockwater Resort and Whittakers. Shortly after becoming involved in Rockwater, Ruben had the opportunity to purchase the Whittaker property. He feels this is an ideal spot for a sailor to call home. There is a secluded moorage with easy access to the ocean. It is a great place to contemplate and reflect, he said – maybe even write a book he has been thinking about.

Reprinted from The Coast Reporter
To view The Coast Reporter online, click here.