Are you looking for a shipwreck to voyage into your imagination? Then head to Gold Beach along highway 101 to find the Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge. There you will discover the retired Mary D. Hume as she slowly decomposes and returns to the sea. The vessel was built in 1881, intended to be a coastal freighter, carrying shipments of salmon and wood from Gold Beach to San Francisco. After over 100 years, in 1985, on her way to becoming a floating museum as an ode to her life of adventure, the Mary D. Hume sank right at the mouth of the Rogue River.
Peeking out of the calm water is the wreckage of her wheelhouse and slowly decaying deck, covered with lush green grass. Below the water the ship is home to fish and other sea creatures, swimming beneath the deck. Maybe you'll spot a salmon or two as you set your gaze upon this wreckage. See what still remains on your next visit.
WHERE: Under the Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge, off Hwy 101, north of Gold Beach
