S.S. Kyle – Harbour Grace, Newfoundland and Labrador - Atlas Obscura

S.S. Kyle

This huge ship ran aground and has simply been left to sit there ever since. 

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Usually when a ship runs aground it is either dragged back out to open water or broken down. But since both of those options are extremely expensive, the S.S. Kyle was simply left where it was, and where it still sits today.  

The 220-foot-long steamship first hit the waters in 1913, and had an industrious record of service that included moving troops and supplies during World War II. Even after the war, she stayed in service for decades, ferrying goods through Canada’s shipping lanes. Unfortunately it was during a run between Carbonear and Labrador on February 4, 1967, the heavy ship ran aground in Harbour Grace’s, well, harbor. The ship’s moorings broke during the storm, and afterward it was towed to its current location.

Since the ship’s demise it has changed hands and owners a number of times, none of the purchasers ever knowing quite what to do with it. With no one looking after the rotting ship’s welfare it simply continued to rust in place, falling apart under the stress of time and neglect. Plans were made to drag the ship out of its grave and turn it into a museum ship, but these, too, were scuttled.  

The ship still sits in its permanent grave, becoming ever more dangerous. A few locals will venture out once in a while to explore the ship but it is not recommended. The ship may never sail again, but its presence seems to become ever more haunting as the years go by.  

Know Before You Go

In the harbour at the river head. You will not miss it from the shore.

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