1 00:00:01,275 --> 00:00:03,103 What gets found? What washes up? 2 00:00:03,206 --> 00:00:04,172 [Bruce] There was nothing. 3 00:00:04,275 --> 00:00:05,655 It was as if those vessels just vanished 4 00:00:05,758 --> 00:00:07,103 off the face of the Earth. 5 00:00:07,206 --> 00:00:09,413 [Josh] Why have these two ships been so hard to find? 6 00:00:11,137 --> 00:00:13,517 [Bruce] The weather can change here dramatically, very quickly. 7 00:00:13,620 --> 00:00:17,344 When that ugly witch rears her head out there, 8 00:00:17,448 --> 00:00:18,827 all hell breaks loose. 9 00:00:19,931 --> 00:00:21,137 [Josh] Tell me you found a piece of wreckage. 10 00:00:21,241 --> 00:00:23,137 We did better than that. We have a body. 11 00:00:23,241 --> 00:00:24,896 What? 12 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:27,793 This completely alters the search zone for this investigation. 13 00:00:27,896 --> 00:00:28,551 [Tom] It does. 14 00:00:31,655 --> 00:00:32,965 -[Josh] Ready to fly? -Ready to roll, man. 15 00:00:33,068 --> 00:00:34,103 [Josh] Let's do it. 16 00:00:34,206 --> 00:00:36,344 -[dramatic music playing] -[engine whirring] 17 00:00:36,448 --> 00:00:39,000 Lake Superior never gives up her dead. 18 00:00:39,724 --> 00:00:41,206 Look at this wreck! 19 00:00:41,310 --> 00:00:43,241 Where has this document been hiding? 20 00:00:43,344 --> 00:00:44,724 Have you been keeping this a secret? 21 00:00:44,827 --> 00:00:45,965 Nobody asked me. 22 00:00:46,068 --> 00:00:47,896 Holy hell. What is that? 23 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:49,724 [Tom] This is dive-able. 24 00:00:49,827 --> 00:00:53,275 [Josh speaking over radio] 25 00:00:59,793 --> 00:01:03,206 [dramatic music playing] 26 00:01:06,448 --> 00:01:08,103 During the First World War, 27 00:01:08,206 --> 00:01:11,241 Germany attempts to choke off France and Britain 28 00:01:11,344 --> 00:01:15,206 by setting tens of thousands of mines in the English Channel, 29 00:01:15,310 --> 00:01:19,241 sinking more than 700 ships and killing thousands. 30 00:01:20,931 --> 00:01:22,655 Desperate to stop the attacks, 31 00:01:22,758 --> 00:01:26,310 the French Navy commissions a factory in Thunder Bay, Canada, 32 00:01:26,413 --> 00:01:28,620 to build a fleet of minesweepers 33 00:01:28,724 --> 00:01:31,655 to remove these deadly bombs one by one. 34 00:01:33,033 --> 00:01:35,793 The last three minesweepers to be completed 35 00:01:35,896 --> 00:01:39,655 sail into Lake Superior in November of 1918. 36 00:01:40,827 --> 00:01:43,655 But only one survives the journey. 37 00:01:43,758 --> 00:01:46,965 The ships are caught in a massive, raging storm, 38 00:01:47,068 --> 00:01:49,931 and two of them vanish without a trace 39 00:01:50,033 --> 00:01:54,206 taking 79 French and Canadian heroes with them. 40 00:01:54,310 --> 00:01:57,862 No wreckage was ever found, no bodies recovered. 41 00:01:57,965 --> 00:02:01,103 The disappearance of the ships, Cerisoles andInkerman, 42 00:02:01,206 --> 00:02:04,655 stands as Lake Superior's largest loss of life 43 00:02:04,758 --> 00:02:06,655 and its greatest mystery. 44 00:02:08,310 --> 00:02:11,275 A century of searches have proven fruitless. 45 00:02:11,379 --> 00:02:13,689 But now, relentless investigators 46 00:02:13,793 --> 00:02:16,034 have found new leads to pursue. 47 00:02:16,137 --> 00:02:18,448 A recently unearthed eyewitness account 48 00:02:18,551 --> 00:02:21,137 has radically changed the search zone. 49 00:02:21,241 --> 00:02:24,689 And a newly found report from a remote Canadian island 50 00:02:24,793 --> 00:02:28,172 suggests that not every sailor went down with the ships. 51 00:02:29,344 --> 00:02:32,655 So, join me on a great adventure in the Great Lakes 52 00:02:32,758 --> 00:02:37,172 as we attempt to write one of the final chapters of the First World War. 53 00:02:37,275 --> 00:02:39,689 Where are the missing minesweepers? 54 00:02:44,172 --> 00:02:45,930 My name is Josh Gates. 55 00:02:46,034 --> 00:02:46,896 Hello! 56 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:47,724 Explorer... 57 00:02:47,827 --> 00:02:48,482 Here goes nothing. 58 00:02:48,586 --> 00:02:49,379 ...adventurer... 59 00:02:49,482 --> 00:02:50,896 Hoo-hoo-hoo! 60 00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:52,275 Oh, that's a long way down. 61 00:02:52,379 --> 00:02:55,103 ...and a guy who ends up in some very strange situations. 62 00:02:55,206 --> 00:02:55,862 [screams] 63 00:02:55,965 --> 00:02:57,517 I'm alive. For now. 64 00:02:57,620 --> 00:03:01,448 With a degree in archeology and a passion for the unexplained, 65 00:03:01,551 --> 00:03:03,586 I travel to the ends of the Earth 66 00:03:03,689 --> 00:03:06,413 investigating the greatest legends in history. 67 00:03:06,517 --> 00:03:07,965 Ready to rock and roll. 68 00:03:08,068 --> 00:03:10,551 This isExpedition Unknown. 69 00:03:12,586 --> 00:03:15,482 [dramatic music playing] 70 00:03:15,586 --> 00:03:18,586 [Josh] My search for the deadliest wrecks in Lake Superior's history 71 00:03:18,689 --> 00:03:21,862 begins here, in the City of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. 72 00:03:21,965 --> 00:03:24,206 Or more accurately, just offshore. 73 00:03:25,827 --> 00:03:27,965 [dramatic music playing] 74 00:03:32,482 --> 00:03:35,000 I am traveling through the Soo Locks, 75 00:03:35,103 --> 00:03:38,586 a critical gateway between Lake Superior up ahead 76 00:03:38,689 --> 00:03:40,379 and Lake Huron, where I am. 77 00:03:40,482 --> 00:03:42,930 Now, these locks don't just sit between lakes, 78 00:03:43,034 --> 00:03:45,000 they also sit between nations. 79 00:03:45,103 --> 00:03:48,413 And the City of Sault Ste. Marie has an American side to my left 80 00:03:48,517 --> 00:03:50,586 and a Canadian side over to the right. 81 00:03:50,689 --> 00:03:52,448 Oh, hey there, Canada! 82 00:03:52,551 --> 00:03:55,275 Thanks for all the movie stars named Ryan, eh? 83 00:03:56,689 --> 00:03:57,965 Getting from one lake to another 84 00:03:58,067 --> 00:04:00,758 isn't quite as simple as just sailing through. 85 00:04:00,862 --> 00:04:05,137 That's because Lake Superior is actually 21 feet higher than Lake Huron. 86 00:04:05,241 --> 00:04:07,586 So, these locks, they're not just gates, 87 00:04:07,689 --> 00:04:10,379 they act as a kind of water elevator. 88 00:04:12,172 --> 00:04:15,241 10,000 vessels a year pass through one of five locks 89 00:04:15,344 --> 00:04:17,103 to get from one lake to the other, 90 00:04:17,206 --> 00:04:19,793 though most are significantly bigger than mine. 91 00:04:21,793 --> 00:04:23,793 We are now entering the locks. 92 00:04:25,206 --> 00:04:26,896 You know, 93 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:28,586 little nerve-racking. 94 00:04:28,689 --> 00:04:31,517 There's about a billion tonnes of water behind that gate, but... 95 00:04:32,551 --> 00:04:33,655 I'm sure it'll hold. 96 00:04:34,482 --> 00:04:35,620 Right, guys? 97 00:04:38,241 --> 00:04:39,517 To equalize the levels, 98 00:04:39,620 --> 00:04:42,379 they pump more that two million gallons of water into the lock 99 00:04:42,482 --> 00:04:46,000 using only gravity, and it takes about 15 minutes. 100 00:04:46,103 --> 00:04:47,689 -And go. -[timer beeps] 101 00:04:47,793 --> 00:04:50,344 [dramatic orchestral music playing] 102 00:04:59,103 --> 00:05:01,310 We should probably cut to a time-lapse. 103 00:05:01,413 --> 00:05:03,551 [orchestral music soars] 104 00:05:11,344 --> 00:05:12,862 And done. 105 00:05:16,724 --> 00:05:19,103 Fifteen minutes later and 21 feet higher, 106 00:05:19,206 --> 00:05:20,896 I'm free to carry on. 107 00:05:22,068 --> 00:05:23,620 All right, we are through. 108 00:05:23,724 --> 00:05:25,068 It is beautiful over here. 109 00:05:25,172 --> 00:05:27,862 I got to say, this lake is definitely 'superior'. 110 00:05:27,965 --> 00:05:28,655 What? 111 00:05:28,758 --> 00:05:30,172 Ah. 112 00:05:30,275 --> 00:05:32,689 Oh, Great Lakes humor. 113 00:05:36,068 --> 00:05:37,896 In November 1918, 114 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:39,965 three French minesweepers set out 115 00:05:40,068 --> 00:05:42,103 on a remarkable journey, 116 00:05:42,206 --> 00:05:45,758 starting where they were built in the Canadian port city of Thunder Bay. 117 00:05:45,862 --> 00:05:49,551 They intended to sail what's known as Hwy H20, 118 00:05:49,655 --> 00:05:52,724 a 2,000-mile watery maze that extends 119 00:05:52,827 --> 00:05:54,103 from Lake Superior 120 00:05:54,206 --> 00:05:56,689 through the Soo Locks into lakes Huron, 121 00:05:56,793 --> 00:05:58,620 Erie, and Ontario, 122 00:05:58,724 --> 00:06:00,448 and out to the Atlantic Ocean. 123 00:06:02,137 --> 00:06:04,620 To learn why only one of the ships made it, 124 00:06:04,724 --> 00:06:06,965 I trade in my paddle for a set of keys 125 00:06:07,068 --> 00:06:10,275 and ride down the coast of Lake Superior. 126 00:06:11,896 --> 00:06:14,413 I'm driving through the Upper Peninsula 127 00:06:14,517 --> 00:06:16,379 or the U.P. of Michigan. 128 00:06:16,482 --> 00:06:19,862 This area takes up about 30% of the state's landmass 129 00:06:19,965 --> 00:06:22,310 but only three percent of the population. 130 00:06:22,413 --> 00:06:25,413 [cheerful music playing] 131 00:06:25,517 --> 00:06:28,172 The people who do live here call themselves "Yoopers". 132 00:06:28,275 --> 00:06:30,551 U.P., Yoopers. Get it? 133 00:06:30,655 --> 00:06:33,137 It's kind of a different world up here, but in a good way. 134 00:06:33,241 --> 00:06:34,482 There's a lot of cheese curds. 135 00:06:35,931 --> 00:06:39,931 ♪ Well, it's 7 a.m. on 285 136 00:06:40,034 --> 00:06:44,689 ♪ Just got on I feel so alive In this pickup truck ♪ 137 00:06:44,793 --> 00:06:46,896 [Josh] The cholesterol capital of the Midwest 138 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:48,896 may not be a bustling metropolis, 139 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:50,896 but it does have a hell of a view. 140 00:06:54,206 --> 00:06:56,206 I steer my way to Whitefish Point, 141 00:06:56,310 --> 00:06:59,758 into the sprawling campus of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, 142 00:06:59,862 --> 00:07:03,137 where I'm meeting with Executive Director Bruce Lynn. 143 00:07:06,275 --> 00:07:07,827 -Bruce. -Josh. 144 00:07:07,931 --> 00:07:09,655 -Nice to meet you. -Nice to meet you as well. 145 00:07:09,758 --> 00:07:11,310 -Welcome to Whitefish Point. -Thank you so much. 146 00:07:11,413 --> 00:07:14,758 I have to say, I'm blown away by this place. 147 00:07:14,862 --> 00:07:18,689 Look, for people who aren't from the Great Lakes, who aren't from around here, 148 00:07:18,793 --> 00:07:20,413 they might be saying to themselves, 149 00:07:20,517 --> 00:07:22,896 "An entire museum devoted to shipwrecks? Really? 150 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:25,620 Aren't these just beautiful, scenic lakes?" 151 00:07:25,724 --> 00:07:28,344 And people might believe that if they come here on a sunny day. 152 00:07:28,448 --> 00:07:31,862 But certainly, the weather can change here dramatically, very quickly. 153 00:07:31,965 --> 00:07:34,034 -Yeah. -Uh, we've had 90-mile-per-hour winds 154 00:07:34,137 --> 00:07:36,344 clocked up here, 35-foot waves. 155 00:07:36,448 --> 00:07:40,379 People find it hard to believe that we have 550 shipwrecks in Lake Superior alone. 156 00:07:40,482 --> 00:07:41,931 And in the Great Lakes total? 157 00:07:42,034 --> 00:07:45,000 -6,000. -6,000 shipwrecks. 158 00:07:45,103 --> 00:07:47,068 6,000 shipwrecks across the Great Lakes. 159 00:07:47,172 --> 00:07:50,000 And this is more than a museum here to these shipwrecks. 160 00:07:50,103 --> 00:07:53,103 You're also actively searching for wrecks, right? 161 00:07:53,206 --> 00:07:56,241 That's absolutely true. We have a research vessel that we go out. 162 00:07:56,344 --> 00:07:57,827 -When the weather cooperates... -[Josh chuckles] 163 00:07:57,931 --> 00:07:59,551 ...we can go out and search for these shipwrecks. 164 00:07:59,655 --> 00:08:02,620 Since 1978 alone, we've found dozens of shipwrecks. 165 00:08:02,724 --> 00:08:03,689 [Josh] Wow. 166 00:08:03,793 --> 00:08:05,586 And as I look around at the displays here, 167 00:08:05,689 --> 00:08:07,655 this has to be the most famous wreck 168 00:08:07,758 --> 00:08:09,862 in the history of the Great Lakes, the Edmund Fitzgerald. 169 00:08:09,965 --> 00:08:11,724 Absolutely. This is the one that everybody knows about. 170 00:08:11,827 --> 00:08:12,827 This is one of the main reasons 171 00:08:12,931 --> 00:08:14,448 people come up and visit the museum. 172 00:08:14,551 --> 00:08:16,551 As a matter of fact, we've got a nice model of the Fitzgerald 173 00:08:16,655 --> 00:08:17,551 you can see right here. 174 00:08:19,586 --> 00:08:23,172 [Josh] Immortalized in song by Canadian balladeer Gordon Lightfoot, 175 00:08:23,275 --> 00:08:26,862 theEdmund Fitzgerald was a 700-foot-long freighter 176 00:08:26,965 --> 00:08:30,448 which sank in a massive storm in 1975, 177 00:08:30,551 --> 00:08:33,517 tragically taking 29 souls with her. 178 00:08:35,136 --> 00:08:36,482 What was so surprising to me 179 00:08:36,586 --> 00:08:39,241 is that for as famous as this wreck is, 180 00:08:39,344 --> 00:08:42,102 it's not the greatest loss of life on Lake Superior. 181 00:08:42,206 --> 00:08:44,551 It's not at all. No. That would be the minesweepers. 182 00:08:44,655 --> 00:08:47,241 The minesweepers. So, let's talk about these minesweepers. 183 00:08:47,344 --> 00:08:50,620 First of all, these ships are built to do 184 00:08:50,724 --> 00:08:52,448 a very particular, a very dangerous job, right? 185 00:08:52,551 --> 00:08:53,689 Absolutely, yeah. 186 00:08:53,793 --> 00:08:55,827 So, during World War I, there were thousands of mines 187 00:08:55,931 --> 00:08:58,137 that were put around ports and shipping lanes. 188 00:08:58,241 --> 00:09:00,482 -Over 43,000 by the Germans alone. -Wow. 189 00:09:00,586 --> 00:09:02,275 [Bruce] So, the French Naval Commission 190 00:09:02,379 --> 00:09:05,068 needed to build more minesweepers. 191 00:09:05,172 --> 00:09:07,482 [Josh] Desperate to clear the English Channel of explosives 192 00:09:07,586 --> 00:09:09,689 and protect Allied vessels, 193 00:09:09,793 --> 00:09:13,068 the French commissioned a small fleet of steel-hulled ships 194 00:09:13,172 --> 00:09:15,344 over 140 feet long. 195 00:09:15,448 --> 00:09:17,413 They were able to clear bombs from the water 196 00:09:17,517 --> 00:09:20,551 by trawling beneath them to sever their anchors. 197 00:09:20,655 --> 00:09:24,034 Once detached from the bottom, the mines would float to the surface, 198 00:09:24,137 --> 00:09:27,517 where they could be destroyed by guns mounted fore and aft. 199 00:09:27,620 --> 00:09:28,931 [loud explosion] 200 00:09:29,034 --> 00:09:30,862 [Josh] And so, why not build them in France? 201 00:09:30,965 --> 00:09:33,379 So, the French shipyards were overrun, 202 00:09:33,482 --> 00:09:34,379 they were overwhelmed. 203 00:09:34,482 --> 00:09:36,068 So, at that point, uh, 204 00:09:36,172 --> 00:09:39,793 they looked at the Canadian Car and Foundry Company in Thunder Bay, Ontario. 205 00:09:39,896 --> 00:09:41,793 They don't sound like a ship company. 206 00:09:41,896 --> 00:09:43,827 -No, they built railroad boxcars. -[Josh chuckles] Okay. 207 00:09:43,931 --> 00:09:46,689 They had to transition. 208 00:09:46,793 --> 00:09:50,310 [Josh] Indeed, the Canadian Car Company had never built ships before. 209 00:09:50,413 --> 00:09:55,034 Yet they agreed to deliver 12 brand-new minesweepers in just six months. 210 00:09:55,137 --> 00:09:58,413 Nine of the vessels launched from the shipyards in Thunder Bay 211 00:09:58,517 --> 00:10:00,620 made it to the Atlantic uneventfully, 212 00:10:00,724 --> 00:10:03,103 and it seemed like the last three would follow 213 00:10:03,206 --> 00:10:07,758 when they left port midday on November 23rd, 1918. 214 00:10:09,068 --> 00:10:11,413 So, the three ships are... 215 00:10:11,517 --> 00:10:13,896 Inkerman, Cerisoles, and Sebastopol. 216 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:17,448 And under the command of a man by the name of Marcel Leclerc. 217 00:10:17,551 --> 00:10:20,931 So, under his command, those three left, uh, Thunder Bay, 218 00:10:21,034 --> 00:10:22,931 and it was just beautiful conditions. 219 00:10:23,034 --> 00:10:25,241 [Josh] So, they left, not a cloud in the sky, everything's fine. 220 00:10:25,344 --> 00:10:27,034 [Bruce] Exactly. And some of the people on the port said, 221 00:10:27,137 --> 00:10:28,310 "You're going to have smooth sailing 222 00:10:28,413 --> 00:10:29,862 -all the way to Sault Ste. Marie." -[Josh] Hmm. 223 00:10:29,965 --> 00:10:32,655 -So, Leclerc is on the Sebastopol. -[Bruce] Correct. 224 00:10:32,758 --> 00:10:35,206 [Josh] This is the only ship that will make it, of the three. 225 00:10:35,310 --> 00:10:36,344 [Bruce] That's absolutely correct. 226 00:10:36,448 --> 00:10:40,241 And at what point do things start to turn? 227 00:10:40,344 --> 00:10:43,689 Probably around 7 o'clock, 8 o'clock at night on the 23rd. 228 00:10:45,310 --> 00:10:47,034 And now, the waves are getting bigger, 229 00:10:47,137 --> 00:10:48,758 he's noticing the wind is picking up. 230 00:10:48,862 --> 00:10:51,620 And then soon after that, now they have waves that are crashing 231 00:10:51,724 --> 00:10:53,379 over the... the bowels of the vessel. 232 00:10:53,482 --> 00:10:55,103 Now he knows he's getting into some weather. 233 00:10:57,206 --> 00:11:00,068 [Josh] Forget whatever image you have of a day at the lake. 234 00:11:00,172 --> 00:11:02,793 The Great Lakes are more like inland seas 235 00:11:02,896 --> 00:11:05,758 with weather that is notoriously unpredictable. 236 00:11:05,862 --> 00:11:10,034 And for thousands of ships caught in her grip, un-survivable. 237 00:11:11,482 --> 00:11:12,931 But he can see the other two ships. 238 00:11:13,034 --> 00:11:14,827 He can see Inkerman and Cerisoles,right? 239 00:11:14,931 --> 00:11:18,310 [Bruce] He could, yeah. They were all three still together at that point. 240 00:11:18,413 --> 00:11:22,137 Around 11 o'clock at night on the 23rd, then things really started to get bad. 241 00:11:24,034 --> 00:11:25,965 [Josh] According to Captain Leclerc, 242 00:11:26,068 --> 00:11:29,344 50-mile-an-hour winds generating 18-foot waves 243 00:11:29,448 --> 00:11:31,827 are threatening to roll the ships over. 244 00:11:31,931 --> 00:11:34,551 Water is getting to theSebastopol's engine room, 245 00:11:34,655 --> 00:11:37,310 and steering is undependable. 246 00:11:37,413 --> 00:11:40,931 Right around 1 a.m., Leclerc loses sight of Inkermanand Cerisoles. 247 00:11:41,034 --> 00:11:43,586 And that's the last time anybody ever saw those ships again. 248 00:11:47,793 --> 00:11:49,793 [Josh] Eventually, the weather breaks, 249 00:11:49,896 --> 00:11:53,310 and theSebastopol limps onward through the Great Lakes. 250 00:11:53,413 --> 00:11:55,517 Leclerc makes the disastrous assumption 251 00:11:55,620 --> 00:12:00,551 that the other two ships and their 79 crewmen are sailing behind him. 252 00:12:00,655 --> 00:12:03,862 How long does it take before Leclerc realizes something's wrong? 253 00:12:03,965 --> 00:12:05,068 It was nearly two weeks. 254 00:12:05,172 --> 00:12:07,344 -Wow. -[Bruce] And after that two-week period, 255 00:12:07,448 --> 00:12:09,275 I think they knew that there was a real problem. 256 00:12:09,379 --> 00:12:11,586 And at that point, he had to organize a search, 257 00:12:11,689 --> 00:12:14,827 and that would encompass the north shore, the southern shore. 258 00:12:14,931 --> 00:12:16,689 Quite an undertaking that time of the year. 259 00:12:16,793 --> 00:12:19,931 And so, what gets found? What... What washes up? 260 00:12:20,034 --> 00:12:23,068 I think this is one of the most surprising parts of this whole story. 261 00:12:23,172 --> 00:12:27,413 These two 143-foot-long vessels, 80 men, nearly, on board, 262 00:12:27,517 --> 00:12:28,551 there was nothing. 263 00:12:28,655 --> 00:12:30,793 Nothing. Not a trail of wreckage, 264 00:12:30,896 --> 00:12:32,379 there wasn't anything floating. 265 00:12:32,482 --> 00:12:35,206 It was as if those vessels just vanished off the face of the Earth. 266 00:12:36,310 --> 00:12:38,275 [Josh] In fact, all that was left behind 267 00:12:38,379 --> 00:12:40,896 was a mystery that remains unsolved. 268 00:12:42,482 --> 00:12:44,931 Why have these two ships been so hard to find? 269 00:12:45,034 --> 00:12:46,551 That's a really good question. 270 00:12:46,655 --> 00:12:49,241 And part of the reason for that is, Lake Superior is huge. 271 00:12:49,344 --> 00:12:51,275 -Yeah. -[Bruce] It's big, it's deep. 272 00:12:51,379 --> 00:12:54,275 There's a lot of areas where those wrecks could hide. 273 00:12:54,379 --> 00:12:57,586 [Josh] But there are some logical places to look. 274 00:12:57,689 --> 00:12:59,068 When the storm gathered, 275 00:12:59,172 --> 00:13:01,586 instead of continuing through the middle of the lake, 276 00:13:01,689 --> 00:13:04,724 Leclerc tried to stay close to the southern shoreline. 277 00:13:04,827 --> 00:13:07,206 It's here, along the Keweenaw Peninsula, 278 00:13:07,310 --> 00:13:09,724 that they likely became separated. 279 00:13:09,827 --> 00:13:14,241 Almost all of the searches forInkerman andCerisoles have been in this zone, 280 00:13:14,344 --> 00:13:16,793 and they've all turned up nothing. 281 00:13:16,896 --> 00:13:18,275 So, how are you going to find them? 282 00:13:18,379 --> 00:13:19,793 So, we still have a lot of work to do. 283 00:13:19,896 --> 00:13:21,724 But we also have to rely on some clues 284 00:13:21,827 --> 00:13:23,206 that might come out of the blue. 285 00:13:23,310 --> 00:13:25,620 And we have one that's really exciting, 286 00:13:25,724 --> 00:13:28,241 that I think is probably going to take this search in a whole different direction. 287 00:13:28,344 --> 00:13:31,344 -A new piece of evidence? -A new piece of evidence. 288 00:13:31,448 --> 00:13:33,275 We may have a potential witness. 289 00:13:33,379 --> 00:13:35,068 -A witness? -Yes. 290 00:13:36,862 --> 00:13:39,206 [Josh] While I'm not sure how Bruce could have an eyewitness 291 00:13:39,310 --> 00:13:41,310 to a 105-year-old shipwreck, 292 00:13:41,413 --> 00:13:43,620 I rush from Whitefish Point to meet him 293 00:13:43,724 --> 00:13:47,551 30 miles to the west along the southern shore of the lake. 294 00:13:47,655 --> 00:13:49,862 Though getting there is going to be a challenge. 295 00:13:51,517 --> 00:13:53,586 [hard rock music playing] 296 00:13:57,241 --> 00:14:02,344 [Josh] Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads. 297 00:14:02,448 --> 00:14:04,724 [music intensifies] 298 00:14:12,827 --> 00:14:14,689 [dramatic music playing] 299 00:14:18,517 --> 00:14:21,103 All right, I am headed along the southern shore of the lake 300 00:14:21,206 --> 00:14:23,413 to a place known as Deer Park. 301 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,655 I'm on the hunt for evidence of two World War I minesweepers 302 00:14:28,758 --> 00:14:31,620 that sank just over a century ago. 303 00:14:31,724 --> 00:14:34,000 Bruce Lynn from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum 304 00:14:34,103 --> 00:14:38,793 has directed me to a historic location a few miles ahead. 305 00:14:38,896 --> 00:14:41,310 There used to be an old life-saving station there 306 00:14:41,413 --> 00:14:43,517 to help stranded ships see. 307 00:14:43,620 --> 00:14:46,827 And Bruce has asked me to meet a guy named Jack Hubbard, 308 00:14:46,931 --> 00:14:50,517 who apparently has a story that I've just got to hear. 309 00:14:50,620 --> 00:14:52,620 [dramatic music playing] 310 00:14:54,827 --> 00:14:56,310 [exclaims in excitement] 311 00:14:56,413 --> 00:14:58,310 Little squirrelly. 312 00:15:05,448 --> 00:15:07,275 I pull up at the edge of the lakeshore, 313 00:15:07,379 --> 00:15:09,413 where I discover a lone figure, 314 00:15:09,517 --> 00:15:11,344 lifelong Yooper, Jack Hubbard, 315 00:15:11,448 --> 00:15:15,586 who waits to tell me a first-hand account of the minesweepers' demise. 316 00:15:15,689 --> 00:15:18,379 [dramatic music playing] 317 00:15:20,379 --> 00:15:21,034 Jack? 318 00:15:21,137 --> 00:15:22,551 -Yes, sir. -[Josh chuckles] 319 00:15:22,655 --> 00:15:24,310 I'm Josh. 320 00:15:24,413 --> 00:15:26,413 -Nice to meet you, man. -Nice to meet you, too. Sit down. Have a seat with me. 321 00:15:26,517 --> 00:15:27,724 You got a great spot here. Look at this. 322 00:15:27,827 --> 00:15:30,000 -A beautiful day. -Yeah. It's an absolutely gorgeous day. 323 00:15:30,103 --> 00:15:31,413 [Josh] All right, Bruce at the museum said 324 00:15:31,517 --> 00:15:34,862 that there may be an eyewitness to the minesweepers. 325 00:15:34,965 --> 00:15:37,896 -Yes. -Now, either you've aged really well... 326 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:39,827 -[Jack] And I have. -[Josh] ...and you have, 327 00:15:39,931 --> 00:15:42,310 -or it's not you. -No, it's not me. 328 00:15:42,413 --> 00:15:43,448 Who's the eyewitness? 329 00:15:43,551 --> 00:15:45,931 My great-grandfather, Richard Chilson. 330 00:15:46,034 --> 00:15:47,275 Your great-grandfather? 331 00:15:47,379 --> 00:15:50,344 Yeah, he worked out of the Deer Park Life-Saving Station. 332 00:15:50,448 --> 00:15:52,344 And that was, like, right around here, right? 333 00:15:52,448 --> 00:15:53,827 -Like, right here? -[Jack] Right here. 334 00:15:53,931 --> 00:15:57,103 Here's a picture of him here. He would be the one in the middle. 335 00:15:57,206 --> 00:15:58,586 -[Josh] This is him, right here. -[Jack] Right there. 336 00:15:58,689 --> 00:16:00,137 -Is this the station behind them? -[Jack] Yes. 337 00:16:00,241 --> 00:16:01,482 -[Josh] Okay. -[Jack] Yeah. 338 00:16:01,586 --> 00:16:02,965 And this is, like, the precursor to the Coast Guard. 339 00:16:03,068 --> 00:16:04,275 -Right? -Yes, yes. 340 00:16:04,379 --> 00:16:05,965 [Josh] The US Life-Saving Service 341 00:16:06,068 --> 00:16:08,724 operated full-time stations along the coast, 342 00:16:08,827 --> 00:16:11,000 where treacherous weather threatened sailors 343 00:16:11,103 --> 00:16:12,965 crossing the Great Lakes. 344 00:16:13,068 --> 00:16:17,103 Brave volunteer crews would attempt to row out in storms 345 00:16:17,206 --> 00:16:19,896 to administer aid to those in distress. 346 00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:23,517 So, he's stationed here. And what's the story? What did he see? 347 00:16:23,620 --> 00:16:27,206 Back in those days, men would have to walk the beach 348 00:16:27,310 --> 00:16:29,586 -a certain amount of miles every night... -Hmm. 349 00:16:29,689 --> 00:16:31,655 [Jack] ...and, uh, patrol the beach. 350 00:16:31,758 --> 00:16:33,448 He was walking the beach, 351 00:16:33,551 --> 00:16:38,310 he saw the ships out there in the storm coming in close to shore. 352 00:16:38,413 --> 00:16:41,000 And he wanted to get them back out onto the, 353 00:16:41,103 --> 00:16:42,620 you know, into deeper water again. 354 00:16:42,724 --> 00:16:44,172 So, what does he do? 355 00:16:44,275 --> 00:16:47,448 Yeah, he took two oil lanterns and he was trying to wave them off... 356 00:16:48,482 --> 00:16:50,758 -[dramatic music playing] -[thunder rumbling] 357 00:16:50,862 --> 00:16:52,896 [Jack] ...trying to make them understand 358 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:55,413 -that this is the shoreline here. -[Josh] Right. 359 00:16:55,517 --> 00:16:57,310 [Jack] But he waved them so much, 360 00:16:57,413 --> 00:16:59,620 they had those old lanterns back then, 361 00:16:59,724 --> 00:17:01,724 that they actually burned his arms. 362 00:17:01,827 --> 00:17:05,000 They were scarred forever after that. 363 00:17:07,000 --> 00:17:09,344 Wow. So, this isn't just some old rumor. 364 00:17:09,448 --> 00:17:12,448 -This is like he bore the scars of this event. -Oh, yes. 365 00:17:12,550 --> 00:17:13,792 -And he talked about it? -Yeah. 366 00:17:13,896 --> 00:17:16,205 So, why is this story just coming out now? 367 00:17:16,310 --> 00:17:17,758 Have you been keeping this a secret? 368 00:17:17,862 --> 00:17:19,758 [both chuckle] 369 00:17:19,862 --> 00:17:21,964 Nobody asked me. 370 00:17:22,068 --> 00:17:25,413 [Josh] The fact is, this information could be a game-changer. 371 00:17:25,517 --> 00:17:29,137 It represents something that wreck hunters never knew existed. 372 00:17:29,241 --> 00:17:32,344 A credible eyewitness report of the minesweepers 373 00:17:32,448 --> 00:17:34,206 on the night of their disappearance. 374 00:17:34,310 --> 00:17:37,620 So, if you were a betting man, where are those minesweepers? 375 00:17:37,724 --> 00:17:39,482 They're somewhere out here. 376 00:17:39,586 --> 00:17:41,724 That's where I would be looking for them. 377 00:17:41,827 --> 00:17:45,103 [Josh] The account from Jack's great-grandfather places the ships 378 00:17:45,206 --> 00:17:48,862 100 miles east of where they were separated during the storm. 379 00:17:50,172 --> 00:17:52,413 It's a long way from where everybody else has been looking. 380 00:17:52,517 --> 00:17:53,620 Thanks for asking, eh? 381 00:17:53,724 --> 00:17:55,965 -You got it. -[laughs] 382 00:17:57,275 --> 00:18:01,000 As we sit here, I'm struck by the fact that this lake today 383 00:18:01,103 --> 00:18:03,000 -is dead calm. -Yeah. 384 00:18:03,103 --> 00:18:05,379 If you'd never been here, you might think 385 00:18:05,482 --> 00:18:07,965 -it doesn't look dangerous at all. -[scoffs] 386 00:18:10,172 --> 00:18:11,689 You look out there right now. 387 00:18:11,793 --> 00:18:16,482 That is the most beautiful place to be in the world out there. 388 00:18:16,586 --> 00:18:17,862 It's so serene. 389 00:18:17,965 --> 00:18:20,103 But I'll tell you what. 390 00:18:21,310 --> 00:18:24,965 When that ugly witch rears her head out there, 391 00:18:25,068 --> 00:18:27,344 all hell breaks loose. 392 00:18:27,448 --> 00:18:31,551 And it's the most godforsaken place in the world you ever want to be. 393 00:18:31,655 --> 00:18:32,448 Hmm. 394 00:18:35,068 --> 00:18:39,379 It's an ominous warning with a lot of tragic history to back it up. 395 00:18:39,482 --> 00:18:41,655 But it's also where I need to go. 396 00:18:41,758 --> 00:18:43,965 [dramatic music playing] 397 00:18:44,068 --> 00:18:45,793 [Josh] Returning to Whitefish Point, 398 00:18:45,896 --> 00:18:49,448 I head to the research vessel from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Society. 399 00:18:49,551 --> 00:18:52,206 In command is Captain Darryl Ertel. 400 00:18:52,310 --> 00:18:54,482 I hear you're a man looking for some minesweepers. 401 00:18:54,586 --> 00:18:55,517 [Darryl] Yes, we are. 402 00:18:55,620 --> 00:18:56,931 -Should we go find them? -[Darryl] Let's go. 403 00:18:57,034 --> 00:18:57,965 Come on. [claps] 404 00:18:59,275 --> 00:19:01,620 [music soars] 405 00:19:09,137 --> 00:19:11,586 [Josh] Darryl is a master of Lake Superior, 406 00:19:11,689 --> 00:19:16,172 having discovered dozens of shipwrecks over 40 years of exploration. 407 00:19:17,275 --> 00:19:19,379 This ship is really kitted out. 408 00:19:19,482 --> 00:19:21,517 I mean, tell me... tell me what we've got here. Obviously, we've got, 409 00:19:21,620 --> 00:19:24,620 -um, some sonar systems aboard, yeah? -[Darryl] Yeah. 410 00:19:24,724 --> 00:19:27,137 We got five plotters, 411 00:19:27,241 --> 00:19:29,931 um, we got infrared cameras for night vision, 412 00:19:30,034 --> 00:19:33,827 and we got the side-scan sonar from Marine Sonic. It's the Explorer II. 413 00:19:33,931 --> 00:19:35,896 And we got a couple of ROVs on board. 414 00:19:36,000 --> 00:19:38,655 I mean, you could do it all from right here. 415 00:19:38,758 --> 00:19:40,241 Yeah, we got the lake covered. 416 00:19:41,862 --> 00:19:44,896 What would it mean to you to find the minesweepers? 417 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:47,103 [Darryl] It is a great loss of life, 418 00:19:47,206 --> 00:19:51,482 and when we try to find the shipwrecks, document them, 419 00:19:51,586 --> 00:19:53,068 and it gives families, 420 00:19:53,172 --> 00:19:55,724 even though it's two, three, four generations down the road, 421 00:19:55,827 --> 00:19:57,034 -closure. -Right. 422 00:19:58,172 --> 00:20:00,655 This is, in a way, a sacred mission 423 00:20:00,758 --> 00:20:02,241 with which the Shipwreck Society 424 00:20:02,344 --> 00:20:03,413 is tasked 425 00:20:03,517 --> 00:20:05,482 to settle the ghosts of history 426 00:20:05,586 --> 00:20:09,137 by searching far from where most people have looked. 427 00:20:09,241 --> 00:20:11,413 Okay, so now we have this new lead, 428 00:20:11,517 --> 00:20:13,344 that Jack Hubbard saying his great-grandfather, 429 00:20:13,448 --> 00:20:15,379 this guy out of this life-saving station, 430 00:20:15,482 --> 00:20:20,137 sees these ships offshore much further to the east, over here in Deer Park. 431 00:20:20,241 --> 00:20:23,310 -Do you think he could have seen the minesweepers? -[Darryl] Definitely possible. 432 00:20:23,413 --> 00:20:24,413 We went back and checked 433 00:20:24,517 --> 00:20:26,896 -the Coast Guard life-saving records. -Right. 434 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:29,689 [Jack] And sure enough, there was a record 435 00:20:29,793 --> 00:20:33,034 of him waving off two ships off the shoreline. 436 00:20:33,137 --> 00:20:35,931 -So, could have been the minesweepers. -Could have been. 437 00:20:36,034 --> 00:20:40,000 [Josh] Darryl has done a preliminary sonar scan of Jack's new search zone 438 00:20:40,103 --> 00:20:44,000 and found some potential anomalies almost 300 feet down. 439 00:20:45,379 --> 00:20:46,896 Luckily, we have a diver aboard 440 00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:49,103 who can easily reach that depth. 441 00:20:49,206 --> 00:20:51,793 This state-of-the-art remote-operated vehicle 442 00:20:51,896 --> 00:20:54,068 has precision thrusters to reach the targets 443 00:20:54,172 --> 00:20:57,586 and real-time video cameras to relay images from the bottom. 444 00:20:59,551 --> 00:21:03,862 We use a crane to carefully lift the robot out over the water to deploy. 445 00:21:05,241 --> 00:21:06,724 Okay, ROV's in. 446 00:21:06,827 --> 00:21:09,724 And with that splash, the ROV powers up, 447 00:21:09,827 --> 00:21:11,655 and we're ready to begin exploring 448 00:21:11,758 --> 00:21:13,827 the unforgiving depths of Lake Superior. 449 00:21:16,310 --> 00:21:17,379 All right, so we are headed down. 450 00:21:17,482 --> 00:21:20,172 [tense music playing] 451 00:21:20,275 --> 00:21:22,482 Looks like we're passing 50 feet. 452 00:21:24,896 --> 00:21:27,310 -Conditions look pretty clear, yeah? -[Darryl] Yeah. 453 00:21:30,379 --> 00:21:33,000 Coming up on 120 feet now. 454 00:21:34,896 --> 00:21:37,517 [Josh] The ROV descends along our anchor line. 455 00:21:37,620 --> 00:21:41,517 At the other end is an unknown target waiting in the darkness. 456 00:21:43,448 --> 00:21:46,586 -And this is on-board sonar on the ROV? -[Darryl] Yes. 457 00:21:46,689 --> 00:21:49,724 [Josh] The ROV's sonar should guide it to whatever's down there, 458 00:21:49,827 --> 00:21:54,172 which we're hoping is a pair of 140-foot steel-hulled minesweepers. 459 00:21:56,068 --> 00:21:59,482 [Darryl] Our target should be down at 250 feet or so. 460 00:21:59,586 --> 00:22:02,310 We are passing 200 feet. 461 00:22:04,482 --> 00:22:06,551 240. 462 00:22:06,655 --> 00:22:10,000 All right, so we're... Could be ten feet from glory here. 463 00:22:11,896 --> 00:22:13,689 -[Josh] Oh. -Starting to see something on the sonar. 464 00:22:13,793 --> 00:22:15,206 [Josh] There's something ahead of us here for sure. 465 00:22:15,310 --> 00:22:17,517 [Darry] So, we want to go straight ahead. 466 00:22:19,241 --> 00:22:21,586 [Josh] Oh, oh, oh. Is that a wreck? 467 00:22:21,689 --> 00:22:24,275 -We got a wreck. [chuckles] -Look at that! 468 00:22:24,379 --> 00:22:29,586 Oh, my word! Look at this wreck! 469 00:22:35,275 --> 00:22:38,068 Are you kidding me? We're underneath it. 470 00:22:38,793 --> 00:22:40,724 Look at this wreck! 471 00:22:40,827 --> 00:22:44,068 Nearly 300 feet under the surface of Lake Superior, 472 00:22:44,172 --> 00:22:49,724 a remove-operated vehicle is hunting for a pair of lost World War I minesweepers, 473 00:22:49,827 --> 00:22:53,068 and it just bumped into something massive. 474 00:22:53,172 --> 00:22:54,448 [Josh] Is it just sitting there? 475 00:22:54,551 --> 00:22:56,103 [Darryl] Yeah. That's the rudder right there. 476 00:22:56,206 --> 00:22:59,344 Get out of here! That's the back of a shipwreck. 477 00:22:59,448 --> 00:23:01,344 This is the rudder, right in here. 478 00:23:01,448 --> 00:23:03,620 Unbelievable. 479 00:23:06,206 --> 00:23:09,758 It is pitch-black, and we're relying on the ROV's on-board lights 480 00:23:09,862 --> 00:23:12,448 to illuminate the stern of the ship. 481 00:23:12,551 --> 00:23:14,758 Could this be one of our ships? 482 00:23:14,862 --> 00:23:18,448 The size looks like it could be, right? This is a large vessel. 483 00:23:18,551 --> 00:23:19,724 Let's get up close to it. 484 00:23:21,034 --> 00:23:22,034 So, we see white paint. 485 00:23:23,482 --> 00:23:25,689 -This is wood. -[Darryl] That's wood. 486 00:23:25,793 --> 00:23:28,068 -It's not the minesweeper. -[Darryl] Not a minesweeper. 487 00:23:28,172 --> 00:23:30,413 But who cares? Wha-- Like, look at this thing. 488 00:23:34,137 --> 00:23:37,068 The minesweepers were steel-plated warships, 489 00:23:37,172 --> 00:23:39,068 so the wooden hull we see here 490 00:23:39,172 --> 00:23:41,724 is proof that this wreck is not one of them. 491 00:23:41,827 --> 00:23:44,827 It is, however, a remarkable discovery. 492 00:23:44,931 --> 00:23:46,344 This is not on any chart? 493 00:23:46,448 --> 00:23:49,655 -This is not charted, right? -No, there's nothing charted here. 494 00:23:49,758 --> 00:23:52,034 [Josh] Look at this, there's a cabin here. 495 00:23:52,137 --> 00:23:54,379 -[Darryl] It's an upper deck. -Right. 496 00:23:54,482 --> 00:23:57,655 -[Darryl] The spindles. -[Josh] Look at the woodwork! 497 00:23:57,758 --> 00:24:00,517 We fly the ROV over the length of the wreck. 498 00:24:00,620 --> 00:24:02,206 Every foot that we travel 499 00:24:02,310 --> 00:24:05,206 offers an incredible new detail to savor. 500 00:24:06,137 --> 00:24:07,413 [Darryl] There's the boiler, 501 00:24:07,517 --> 00:24:09,275 so it's steam-powered. 502 00:24:09,379 --> 00:24:12,000 Is it, like, a tug, is it, like, a cargo ship? What is it, you think? 503 00:24:13,241 --> 00:24:14,206 [Darryl] That's a tug. 504 00:24:14,310 --> 00:24:16,000 [Josh] This is a tug. 505 00:24:16,103 --> 00:24:17,241 How old do you think this is? 506 00:24:17,965 --> 00:24:20,448 Gotta be over 100 years. 507 00:24:20,551 --> 00:24:23,310 [Josh] Darryl believes the wreck is a steam tug, 508 00:24:23,413 --> 00:24:25,655 vital vessels used to support and tow 509 00:24:25,758 --> 00:24:27,310 other ships and barges 510 00:24:27,413 --> 00:24:29,586 operating on the Great Lakes. 511 00:24:29,689 --> 00:24:32,586 This one appears to have been retired rather suddenly, 512 00:24:32,689 --> 00:24:34,793 almost certainly in a storm. 513 00:24:34,896 --> 00:24:37,310 This is literally the first time 514 00:24:37,413 --> 00:24:38,758 people are seeing this 515 00:24:38,862 --> 00:24:40,275 in a century. 516 00:24:40,379 --> 00:24:42,000 Like, that's unbelievable. 517 00:24:42,103 --> 00:24:44,137 It's just been sitting down there, waiting. 518 00:24:45,931 --> 00:24:47,310 -Oh, there is the compass. -What was that? 519 00:24:47,413 --> 00:24:49,379 -That's a compass? -[Darryl] That's a compass. 520 00:24:49,482 --> 00:24:50,689 -[Josh] Right here? -[Darryl] Right there. 521 00:24:50,793 --> 00:24:52,137 -[Josh] That's a brass compass? -[Darryl] Yeah. 522 00:24:53,931 --> 00:24:55,482 This is completely insane. 523 00:24:57,724 --> 00:24:59,551 -[Darryl] There's the bow. -[Josh] There's an anchor. 524 00:24:59,655 --> 00:25:02,448 It's just sitting in place, look at that! 525 00:25:05,068 --> 00:25:07,517 I just cannot believe the preservation here, 526 00:25:07,620 --> 00:25:09,689 like, if this wooden wreck was in the ocean, 527 00:25:09,793 --> 00:25:11,620 there'd be, like, nothing left. 528 00:25:11,724 --> 00:25:15,241 Lake Superior preserves our shipwrecks very well. 529 00:25:15,344 --> 00:25:18,103 And it may be that these minesweepers 530 00:25:18,206 --> 00:25:20,793 are like this, just kind of frozen in time, right? 531 00:25:20,896 --> 00:25:22,137 Oh, they would definitely be, 532 00:25:22,241 --> 00:25:24,172 if they're in Lake Superior, they're gonna be... 533 00:25:24,896 --> 00:25:26,655 perfectly preserved. 534 00:25:26,758 --> 00:25:28,965 [Josh] So, what do you think, what is this? 535 00:25:29,068 --> 00:25:30,379 Can we identify this ship? 536 00:25:30,482 --> 00:25:31,827 Oh, we'll identify it. 537 00:25:31,931 --> 00:25:33,206 -For sure? -Oh, yeah. 538 00:25:33,310 --> 00:25:35,172 You think you could put a name with the face? 539 00:25:35,275 --> 00:25:36,551 Oh, I'm certain we can. 540 00:25:37,862 --> 00:25:39,793 [Josh] This wreck is historic. 541 00:25:39,896 --> 00:25:42,379 One of the lost stories of Lake Superior 542 00:25:42,482 --> 00:25:44,103 that has just been rediscovered. 543 00:25:47,241 --> 00:25:49,724 After surveying the ship from all sides, 544 00:25:49,827 --> 00:25:52,241 we make the long steam back to the dock, 545 00:25:52,344 --> 00:25:53,517 thrilled at the prospect 546 00:25:53,620 --> 00:25:56,655 that Darryl may eventually be able to ID the vessel 547 00:25:56,758 --> 00:25:58,965 by pouring over old records. 548 00:25:59,896 --> 00:26:01,689 Meanwhile, I'm back on the road 549 00:26:01,793 --> 00:26:04,103 to pursue another hot, new lead 550 00:26:04,206 --> 00:26:07,586 from researchers who have discovered a long-lost document 551 00:26:07,689 --> 00:26:11,103 that could change the search zone even further. 552 00:26:11,206 --> 00:26:12,620 The southern shore of Lake Superior 553 00:26:12,724 --> 00:26:15,931 isn't the only place that people are hunting for the minesweepers. 554 00:26:16,034 --> 00:26:17,034 In fact, right now, 555 00:26:17,137 --> 00:26:18,689 another group is getting underway 556 00:26:18,793 --> 00:26:22,000 with a search on a remote island along the northern shore. 557 00:26:22,103 --> 00:26:25,689 And to reach them, I'm gonna have to cross the border, into Canada. 558 00:26:28,206 --> 00:26:30,517 I start by driving back through Sault Ste. Marie 559 00:26:30,620 --> 00:26:33,137 through the most polite checkpoint on the planet. 560 00:26:34,724 --> 00:26:36,344 -Thanks, buddy. -Thank you. Well, that was easy. 561 00:26:37,620 --> 00:26:39,275 Cheers. 562 00:26:39,379 --> 00:26:41,413 From there, I keep on driving north. 563 00:26:41,517 --> 00:26:42,551 Way north. 564 00:26:42,655 --> 00:26:45,655 To the remote city of Wawa, Ontario. 565 00:26:48,551 --> 00:26:50,586 Population, 2,900, 566 00:26:50,689 --> 00:26:53,758 all of whom appear to have some sort of goose fetish. 567 00:26:53,862 --> 00:26:55,068 They're in restaurants, 568 00:26:55,172 --> 00:26:56,517 -they're in hotels. -[goose honks] 569 00:26:56,620 --> 00:26:57,620 [Josh] Roving gangs of them 570 00:26:57,724 --> 00:26:59,310 -terrorize the parks. -[geese honk] 571 00:26:59,413 --> 00:27:01,275 Then there's this. 572 00:27:01,379 --> 00:27:03,758 This here is the "Wawa Goose". 573 00:27:03,862 --> 00:27:05,655 At 28 feet tall, 574 00:27:05,758 --> 00:27:08,793 it is the largest goose statue in the world. 575 00:27:08,896 --> 00:27:11,206 -[woman] It's not. -What? Seriously? 576 00:27:11,310 --> 00:27:13,137 [woman] There's a bigger one in Missouri. 577 00:27:14,448 --> 00:27:16,620 [Josh] This is the Wava Goose. 578 00:27:16,724 --> 00:27:20,275 It is a large goose statue. 579 00:27:20,379 --> 00:27:23,241 I'm about to go meet the next team of minesweeper hunters 580 00:27:23,344 --> 00:27:25,965 in one of the most remote corners of Canada. 581 00:27:26,068 --> 00:27:28,827 So I make sure to stop at Young's General Store 582 00:27:28,931 --> 00:27:31,206 for a few wilderness essentials, 583 00:27:31,310 --> 00:27:32,758 like genuine maple syrup. 584 00:27:34,758 --> 00:27:35,931 That should do it. 585 00:27:36,034 --> 00:27:38,034 Rule number one of camping in Canada, 586 00:27:38,137 --> 00:27:39,241 stay warm. 587 00:27:39,344 --> 00:27:41,551 Even if it means making some moral compromises. 588 00:27:42,310 --> 00:27:43,586 Remember, fur is murder. 589 00:27:44,275 --> 00:27:46,344 Warm, soft murder. 590 00:27:48,310 --> 00:27:49,551 No, it's murder, it's murder! 591 00:27:51,275 --> 00:27:52,103 But this 592 00:27:52,206 --> 00:27:53,413 feels so good. [laughs] 593 00:27:53,517 --> 00:27:54,862 Oh, and be careful, 594 00:27:54,965 --> 00:27:57,689 Young's General Store does not take shoplifting lightly. 595 00:27:59,482 --> 00:28:00,689 -[metal clangs] -[screams] 596 00:28:00,793 --> 00:28:02,000 Son of a... 597 00:28:02,103 --> 00:28:04,172 Once the swelling in my fingers goes down, 598 00:28:04,275 --> 00:28:07,793 I'm ready to go find the new team that's hunting the minesweepers. 599 00:28:09,448 --> 00:28:11,310 To make things as difficult as possible, 600 00:28:11,413 --> 00:28:13,965 they're staging their search on Michipicoten, 601 00:28:14,068 --> 00:28:17,275 a desolate island 50 miles off-shore from here. 602 00:28:17,379 --> 00:28:19,206 It means I need to trade in my wheels. 603 00:28:21,517 --> 00:28:24,620 I step on board a trustee Cessna Caravan. 604 00:28:24,724 --> 00:28:26,620 Fun fact, in 2022, 605 00:28:26,724 --> 00:28:28,655 a passenger with no flight experience 606 00:28:28,758 --> 00:28:30,137 was able to land one of these 607 00:28:30,241 --> 00:28:32,689 when the pilot became incapacitated. 608 00:28:32,793 --> 00:28:34,275 This guy looks healthy, though. 609 00:28:34,379 --> 00:28:36,241 Okay, Kurt, let's do it. 610 00:28:36,344 --> 00:28:37,793 -[Kurt] How are you doing? -[Josh] Good. 611 00:28:38,448 --> 00:28:39,586 All right, ready to fly? 612 00:28:39,689 --> 00:28:41,551 -Ready to roll, man. -Let's do it. 613 00:28:42,172 --> 00:28:44,310 [engine whirring] 614 00:28:53,241 --> 00:28:55,172 [Josh] On the stick for my trip over the lake 615 00:28:55,275 --> 00:28:57,931 is Canadian Bush pilot, Kurt Brassard. 616 00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:04,000 Look at that, look at this still, beautiful. 617 00:29:13,551 --> 00:29:15,310 We take off toward Michipicoten, 618 00:29:15,413 --> 00:29:17,620 and as the land peels away behind us, 619 00:29:17,724 --> 00:29:21,241 it takes with it the last traces of civilization. 620 00:29:24,448 --> 00:29:26,034 It's not until you get up in the air 621 00:29:26,137 --> 00:29:29,241 that you realize just how remote this place is. 622 00:29:29,344 --> 00:29:30,379 Forget the island, 623 00:29:30,482 --> 00:29:31,758 you look down at the coast, 624 00:29:31,862 --> 00:29:35,379 there's no roads, there's no houses, there's no electricity. 625 00:29:35,482 --> 00:29:38,206 Everything below us is just pure wilderness. 626 00:29:40,172 --> 00:29:42,586 It's a short flight, I don't even get any peanuts. 627 00:29:45,482 --> 00:29:47,551 So the island is really coming in to view now, 628 00:29:47,655 --> 00:29:50,758 and the thing that jumps out at me is 629 00:29:50,862 --> 00:29:53,034 it's really mysterious. 630 00:29:53,137 --> 00:29:56,275 This huge place, it's, like, 17 miles across, 631 00:29:56,379 --> 00:29:59,172 and you got no permanent human population there, 632 00:29:59,275 --> 00:30:00,689 just wild animals, 633 00:30:00,793 --> 00:30:02,689 and according to native legend, 634 00:30:02,793 --> 00:30:03,862 maybe a monster. 635 00:30:06,034 --> 00:30:08,931 The Anishinaabe people of the Canadian First Nations 636 00:30:09,034 --> 00:30:11,310 called the monster Mishipeshu, 637 00:30:11,413 --> 00:30:13,448 a powerful and dangerous god 638 00:30:13,551 --> 00:30:16,034 depicted as an underwater panther. 639 00:30:16,137 --> 00:30:20,000 Legend holds that Mishipeshu could cause dangerous storms, 640 00:30:20,103 --> 00:30:22,896 a reminder that this lake was famously lethal 641 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:26,068 long before modern minesweepers disappeared here. 642 00:30:27,206 --> 00:30:29,206 The island, blanketed in fog, 643 00:30:29,310 --> 00:30:31,034 rises up as we approach. 644 00:30:31,137 --> 00:30:33,758 If Mishipeshu does live here, 645 00:30:33,862 --> 00:30:35,551 he doesn't get many visitors. 646 00:30:36,344 --> 00:30:38,517 Okay, coming in, here we go. 647 00:30:41,931 --> 00:30:43,068 [engine whirring] 648 00:30:45,172 --> 00:30:46,206 [Josh] Okay, we're down. 649 00:30:48,103 --> 00:30:50,379 We gently touch down in a protected bay 650 00:30:50,482 --> 00:30:53,620 that is, at least so far, free of water panthers. 651 00:30:55,620 --> 00:30:58,413 All right, well, welcome to the middle of nowhere. 652 00:31:03,344 --> 00:31:04,758 A skiff comes out to meet us 653 00:31:04,862 --> 00:31:07,379 and ferries me the rest of the way to Michipicoten, 654 00:31:07,482 --> 00:31:09,724 where, amidst abandoned buildings, 655 00:31:09,827 --> 00:31:12,137 I finally see a familiar face. 656 00:31:13,620 --> 00:31:16,241 -Tom Crossman. -[Tom] Josh Gates, how are ya? 657 00:31:16,344 --> 00:31:17,793 -[Josh] Good to see you, man. How you been? -[Tom] Nice to see you. 658 00:31:17,896 --> 00:31:19,551 -Good, how are you? -[Josh] I'm great. 659 00:31:19,655 --> 00:31:21,655 Search and rescue expert Tom Crossman 660 00:31:21,758 --> 00:31:24,827 is anExpedition Unknown regular by now. 661 00:31:24,931 --> 00:31:27,551 I worked with him, along with his partner Dave Phillips 662 00:31:27,655 --> 00:31:30,310 on two other Great Lakes adventures, 663 00:31:30,413 --> 00:31:33,827 exploring the history of the lost ship,The Griffin, 664 00:31:33,931 --> 00:31:37,137 and investigating the legend of John Dillinger's loot. 665 00:31:37,241 --> 00:31:39,896 But now, he's looking for two minesweepers 666 00:31:40,000 --> 00:31:43,310 in what appears to be the location of a '70s slasher flick. 667 00:31:43,413 --> 00:31:45,379 -This was a, like, a fishing camp? -It was. 668 00:31:45,482 --> 00:31:47,862 -How many buildings are out here? -There's, like, a dozen. 669 00:31:47,965 --> 00:31:49,137 -[Josh] Spooky. You're sleeping out here? -[Tom] Yeah. 670 00:31:49,241 --> 00:31:50,137 Well, yeah. 671 00:31:50,241 --> 00:31:51,482 Why have you dragged me up here? 672 00:31:51,586 --> 00:31:52,931 I mean, we are... 673 00:31:53,034 --> 00:31:56,000 We are very far from the point last seen of these minesweepers. 674 00:31:56,103 --> 00:31:57,827 -We are. -Tell me you found a piece of wreckage. 675 00:31:57,931 --> 00:31:59,275 We did better than that. 676 00:31:59,379 --> 00:32:00,413 We have a body. 677 00:32:01,172 --> 00:32:02,034 What? 678 00:32:09,034 --> 00:32:10,275 -You found a body? -[Tom] Yes. 679 00:32:10,379 --> 00:32:12,275 -What do you mean? -Well, I'll show you what I mean. 680 00:32:12,379 --> 00:32:14,241 [Josh] Search and rescue expert Tom Crossman 681 00:32:14,344 --> 00:32:16,689 has been looking for two French minesweepers 682 00:32:16,793 --> 00:32:19,517 lost in Lake Superior for the last 100 years, 683 00:32:19,620 --> 00:32:23,206 and he may have recently found the clue he needs to locate them. 684 00:32:23,310 --> 00:32:24,586 What is this? 685 00:32:24,689 --> 00:32:27,793 This is a report that was submitted from a lighthouse keeper 686 00:32:27,896 --> 00:32:28,793 here on the island. 687 00:32:28,896 --> 00:32:30,344 [Josh] And this is from 688 00:32:30,448 --> 00:32:32,103 -1919? -[Tom] 1919. 689 00:32:32,862 --> 00:32:33,862 "To whom it may concern, 690 00:32:33,965 --> 00:32:35,517 one Charles McDonald," 691 00:32:35,620 --> 00:32:36,931 -that's the lighthouse keeper? -[Tom] Yes. 692 00:32:37,034 --> 00:32:40,517 [Josh] "On the 3rd, found a dead man 693 00:32:40,620 --> 00:32:43,034 on the shore of Michipicoten Island, 694 00:32:43,137 --> 00:32:45,275 about two miles west 695 00:32:45,379 --> 00:32:46,586 of Quebec Harbour." 696 00:32:46,689 --> 00:32:48,034 -This is Quebec Harbour? -[Tom] Yes. It is. 697 00:32:48,137 --> 00:32:49,655 So two miles west of here 698 00:32:49,758 --> 00:32:50,620 -is down here? -Yes. 699 00:32:50,724 --> 00:32:51,689 West Sand Bay. 700 00:32:51,793 --> 00:32:54,344 "Upon examination, found that it was 701 00:32:54,448 --> 00:32:57,310 that of a sailor officer off some vessel. 702 00:32:57,413 --> 00:32:59,344 He had on a blue uniform, 703 00:32:59,448 --> 00:33:02,068 with a stripe on each wrist of his coat, 704 00:33:02,172 --> 00:33:03,896 also a red anchor mark 705 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:06,241 on each side of his coat collar, 706 00:33:06,344 --> 00:33:09,344 brass buttons on which there were marked, 707 00:33:09,448 --> 00:33:11,724 'Equipages de la flotte'." 708 00:33:11,827 --> 00:33:13,448 -In French? -Yes. Correct. 709 00:33:13,551 --> 00:33:15,517 -This guy found a French sailor? -[Tom] Yes. 710 00:33:15,620 --> 00:33:16,689 And if you go to the last page... 711 00:33:16,793 --> 00:33:19,344 -[Josh] Okay. -...there's an example of a button 712 00:33:19,448 --> 00:33:21,689 from a French naval officer from that era. 713 00:33:21,793 --> 00:33:23,586 Get out of here, look at this. 714 00:33:23,689 --> 00:33:25,655 A brass button with an anchor, 715 00:33:25,758 --> 00:33:27,517 and what does it say on the rim? 716 00:33:27,620 --> 00:33:28,827 Equipages de la flotte. 717 00:33:28,931 --> 00:33:30,793 This is incredible! 718 00:33:30,896 --> 00:33:32,758 The report shows that only months 719 00:33:32,862 --> 00:33:35,241 after the disappearance of the two minesweepers, 720 00:33:35,344 --> 00:33:38,000 the body of a French sailor was found here 721 00:33:38,103 --> 00:33:39,379 on Michipicoten. 722 00:33:39,482 --> 00:33:42,586 So this body must have been from the minesweepers. 723 00:33:42,689 --> 00:33:43,724 There's no question. 724 00:33:43,827 --> 00:33:46,034 Where has this document been hiding? 725 00:33:46,137 --> 00:33:48,896 We worked on a tip from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, 726 00:33:49,000 --> 00:33:52,068 and buried in the archives, we discovered this document. 727 00:33:52,172 --> 00:33:53,931 -Just sitting in there the whole time? -Yes. 728 00:33:54,034 --> 00:33:57,172 For years, there's been rumors that two other French sailors 729 00:33:57,275 --> 00:34:00,344 were found in West Sand Bay in the 1930s. 730 00:34:00,448 --> 00:34:02,551 -Which would mean three bodies found there, total. -[Tom] Correct. 731 00:34:02,655 --> 00:34:04,620 But with this, it feels like this is real. 732 00:34:04,724 --> 00:34:06,068 [Josh] Oh, I mean, no question. 733 00:34:06,172 --> 00:34:08,827 This... This is a guy giving a very detailed, specific report 734 00:34:08,931 --> 00:34:11,206 and describing the uniform in detail. 735 00:34:11,310 --> 00:34:12,620 -So even if all three... -Yeah. 736 00:34:12,724 --> 00:34:15,482 -...of these bodies are from the minesweepers... -[Tom] Yeah. 737 00:34:15,585 --> 00:34:17,206 ...dumb question, couldn't they have floated here 738 00:34:17,310 --> 00:34:18,757 from anywhere in Lake Superior? 739 00:34:18,862 --> 00:34:20,068 -Very unlikely... -[Josh] Okay. 740 00:34:20,172 --> 00:34:22,413 ...that they would all land in the same bay. 741 00:34:22,516 --> 00:34:24,206 Josh, we have an expression here, 742 00:34:24,310 --> 00:34:26,688 "Lake Superior never gives up her dead." 743 00:34:27,516 --> 00:34:28,655 The reason for that 744 00:34:28,757 --> 00:34:30,827 -is it's so deep and so cold... -[Josh] Yeah. 745 00:34:30,931 --> 00:34:33,206 ...that if it's beyond 150 feet, 746 00:34:33,310 --> 00:34:35,068 those bodies are likely not coming back up. 747 00:34:35,172 --> 00:34:36,965 Wow, okay. Because of what, pressure? 748 00:34:37,068 --> 00:34:38,757 Pressure and the cold temperatures. 749 00:34:38,862 --> 00:34:41,551 So we've got these three bodies washing up in one bay. 750 00:34:41,655 --> 00:34:43,206 Maybe that wreck 751 00:34:43,310 --> 00:34:45,585 isn't in deep water out in the middle of Lake Superior, 752 00:34:45,688 --> 00:34:47,482 -maybe it's close by. -That's right. 753 00:34:47,585 --> 00:34:50,413 This completely alters the search zone for this investigation. 754 00:34:50,516 --> 00:34:52,793 -[Tom] It does. -Because this is really 755 00:34:52,896 --> 00:34:54,688 the most compelling piece of evidence 756 00:34:54,793 --> 00:34:55,793 -in this case. -Yes. 757 00:34:55,896 --> 00:34:57,206 [Josh] So, 758 00:34:57,310 --> 00:34:58,655 -how're you gonna find these wrecks? -Come on, I'll show ya. 759 00:35:00,275 --> 00:35:01,137 [Josh] What have you got, Tom? 760 00:35:02,724 --> 00:35:04,620 Tom leads me to a nearby dock 761 00:35:04,724 --> 00:35:07,482 where he has a vessel waiting to hunt the minesweepers. 762 00:35:07,586 --> 00:35:10,517 At the helm is my old friend, David Phillips. 763 00:35:10,620 --> 00:35:12,275 -Josh, you remember Dave. -Hey, how are you, man? 764 00:35:12,379 --> 00:35:13,931 -Great to see you, Josh. -Good to see you as well. 765 00:35:14,034 --> 00:35:15,517 -How you been? -Oh, wonderful. 766 00:35:15,620 --> 00:35:16,724 -[Josh] Shall we do it? -Let's go. 767 00:35:16,827 --> 00:35:17,551 Let's go, come on, man. 768 00:35:20,620 --> 00:35:22,413 Dave pilots us in to the lake, 769 00:35:22,517 --> 00:35:24,689 and I quickly see that no matter what, 770 00:35:24,793 --> 00:35:28,000 we are guaranteed to encounter shipwrecks. 771 00:35:28,103 --> 00:35:30,862 Known wrecks litter the sheltered harbor here, 772 00:35:30,965 --> 00:35:34,586 a testament to how dangerous Lake Superior truly is. 773 00:35:34,689 --> 00:35:37,517 Mishipeshu has certainly been busy over the years. 774 00:35:38,379 --> 00:35:39,827 Let's talk strategy here. 775 00:35:39,931 --> 00:35:42,172 I know your lethal weapon is sonar. 776 00:35:42,275 --> 00:35:43,379 -Absolutely, yes. -[Josh] Right, we got 777 00:35:43,482 --> 00:35:44,724 -our big towfish back here. -Yes. 778 00:35:44,827 --> 00:35:45,931 [Josh] How powerful is this thing? 779 00:35:46,034 --> 00:35:47,448 -[Tom] Really powerful. -Okay. 780 00:35:47,551 --> 00:35:51,206 You can literally look out, um, 3,000 feet per side in that sonar. 781 00:35:51,310 --> 00:35:52,793 -[Josh] Six thousand feet across? -[Tom] Six thousand feet. 782 00:35:53,758 --> 00:35:55,275 -That's insane. -[Tom] It is. 783 00:35:55,379 --> 00:35:57,620 -[Josh] Over a mile in one pass? -Yeah. Yes. 784 00:35:57,724 --> 00:36:00,862 So, let's talk about where you wanna point this thing. 785 00:36:00,965 --> 00:36:03,068 Like, we know these bodies washed up 786 00:36:03,172 --> 00:36:04,689 -on West Sand beach. -[Tom] Yes. 787 00:36:04,793 --> 00:36:07,793 [Josh] Does them washing up give us any forensic clues? 788 00:36:07,896 --> 00:36:09,137 Where do you think the ships could be? 789 00:36:09,241 --> 00:36:11,034 -We're thinking we'll work to the southwest. -[Josh] Okay. 790 00:36:11,137 --> 00:36:13,620 The very wind that night was from the southwest. 791 00:36:13,724 --> 00:36:15,517 The idea being that maybe the wind blew the bodies 792 00:36:15,620 --> 00:36:17,517 -northeast into the bay. -That's exactly right. 793 00:36:17,620 --> 00:36:19,379 -So we go to where the wind was blowing. -That's right. 794 00:36:19,482 --> 00:36:20,448 All right. 795 00:36:20,551 --> 00:36:21,586 -Dave? -Yes, sir? 796 00:36:21,689 --> 00:36:22,448 [Josh] Southwest. 797 00:36:22,551 --> 00:36:23,551 Away we go. 798 00:36:23,655 --> 00:36:24,620 Away we go. 799 00:36:26,862 --> 00:36:29,413 We cruise around the shoreline of Michipicoten 800 00:36:29,517 --> 00:36:31,862 toward the southwestern edge of the island. 801 00:36:31,965 --> 00:36:33,379 It's in this area, 802 00:36:33,482 --> 00:36:37,000 near where the bodies reportedly washed up in 1919, 803 00:36:37,103 --> 00:36:40,137 that Tom hopes the minesweepers might be hiding. 804 00:36:41,241 --> 00:36:43,137 The boat maneuvers into position. 805 00:36:43,241 --> 00:36:44,517 [machine sputtering] 806 00:36:44,620 --> 00:36:47,034 [Josh] Now it's time to deploy the sonar towfish 807 00:36:47,137 --> 00:36:49,034 that will scan for the wrecks. 808 00:36:49,137 --> 00:36:50,206 Okay, keep going out. 809 00:36:51,482 --> 00:36:52,241 It's clear. 810 00:36:55,931 --> 00:36:58,344 -Sonar in the water. -It's in the water. 811 00:36:58,448 --> 00:37:00,379 -[Josh] And we got our image. -[Tom] We do. 812 00:37:00,482 --> 00:37:02,034 Now let's just mow the lawn. 813 00:37:02,689 --> 00:37:03,620 That's it. 814 00:37:05,931 --> 00:37:07,241 The scanning begins, 815 00:37:07,344 --> 00:37:10,862 as the towfish sends us a real time image of the lake bed. 816 00:37:12,862 --> 00:37:14,655 It's a long and tedious process, 817 00:37:14,758 --> 00:37:17,000 one with which I am intimately familiar. 818 00:37:17,896 --> 00:37:19,448 It means a lot of watching 819 00:37:19,551 --> 00:37:21,172 and a lot of waiting. 820 00:37:26,551 --> 00:37:28,241 I don't see anything yet. 821 00:37:32,310 --> 00:37:34,724 [Josh] And then, after hours of scanning, 822 00:37:34,827 --> 00:37:35,482 we get a hit. 823 00:37:37,241 --> 00:37:38,689 -What is that? -What the hell is that? 824 00:37:38,793 --> 00:37:40,448 [Tom] That... That's really interesting. 825 00:37:41,482 --> 00:37:43,448 [Josh] We got a huge shadow here. 826 00:37:43,551 --> 00:37:44,758 [Tom] Look at that. 827 00:37:44,862 --> 00:37:47,206 Holy hell, what is that? 828 00:37:47,310 --> 00:37:50,172 -This looks like something's broken up in here. -[Tom] It does. 829 00:37:50,275 --> 00:37:51,931 -Can you measure the length of that? -Yes. 830 00:37:53,172 --> 00:37:54,413 Hard to say, 831 00:37:54,517 --> 00:37:57,206 it's at least 160. 832 00:37:57,310 --> 00:37:58,586 -Hundred-and-sixty? -Yep. 833 00:37:58,689 --> 00:38:00,689 -Minesweepers are 140-some-odd feet. -Yeah. 834 00:38:00,793 --> 00:38:02,137 -If it's broken up in a debris field... -[Tom] Yeah. 835 00:38:02,241 --> 00:38:04,965 -...that's exactly what it should be. -[Tom] Yeah. 836 00:38:05,068 --> 00:38:07,862 -That looks like a shipwreck. -It absolutely is. 837 00:38:08,931 --> 00:38:10,103 Come on, 838 00:38:10,206 --> 00:38:12,758 -get out of here, look at it! -[chuckles] Look at that! 839 00:38:13,655 --> 00:38:14,965 This is dive-able. 840 00:38:15,068 --> 00:38:16,896 -We're only in 50 feet of water here? -Yes. 841 00:38:17,931 --> 00:38:19,689 -[Josh] We can dive this? -We can dive this. 842 00:38:20,275 --> 00:38:21,310 [Josh] Okay. 843 00:38:21,413 --> 00:38:23,206 We need tanks and we need a dive boat. 844 00:38:23,862 --> 00:38:25,206 Anybody in Wawa? 845 00:38:25,310 --> 00:38:27,551 Yeah, I can make some phone calls. 846 00:38:27,655 --> 00:38:31,034 -Dave, we... Mark that position for us, yeah? -Got it. 847 00:38:32,482 --> 00:38:34,482 [Josh] We've discovered a debris field big enough 848 00:38:34,586 --> 00:38:36,068 to be one of the minesweepers, 849 00:38:36,172 --> 00:38:38,379 and miraculously, it's in water 850 00:38:38,482 --> 00:38:41,620 that's shallow enough for us to dive. 851 00:38:41,724 --> 00:38:44,241 While Tom starts arranging for scuba support, 852 00:38:44,344 --> 00:38:46,482 we return to Michipicoten Island, 853 00:38:46,586 --> 00:38:48,448 where we'll be camping for the night 854 00:38:48,551 --> 00:38:50,206 with temperatures in the low 30s. 855 00:38:52,241 --> 00:38:53,310 On second glance, 856 00:38:53,413 --> 00:38:56,068 this little island paradise isn't just spooky, 857 00:38:56,172 --> 00:38:57,137 it's terrifying. 858 00:38:58,379 --> 00:39:00,310 So, this place is super creepy. 859 00:39:00,413 --> 00:39:04,000 We are literally making our camp on the edge of a ghost town. 860 00:39:04,103 --> 00:39:06,310 There was copper mining here at one point, 861 00:39:06,413 --> 00:39:07,758 which is why a lot of this was built. 862 00:39:07,862 --> 00:39:10,206 But the late 1800s, the mines gave out. 863 00:39:10,310 --> 00:39:13,413 Some local fishermen came in and turned this into kind of a fishing camp. 864 00:39:13,517 --> 00:39:14,758 But other than that, 865 00:39:14,862 --> 00:39:17,172 these buildings are just abandoned and rotting here, 866 00:39:17,275 --> 00:39:20,344 and the whole place has a really ghostly vibe. 867 00:39:20,448 --> 00:39:23,448 The buildings are in various stages of decomposition, 868 00:39:23,551 --> 00:39:25,586 both outside and in. 869 00:39:25,689 --> 00:39:28,827 It's enough to let a person's imagination run away with them. 870 00:39:28,931 --> 00:39:30,482 I unfortunately have read 871 00:39:30,586 --> 00:39:32,827 every novel that Stephen King has ever written. 872 00:39:32,931 --> 00:39:35,034 So I will not be sleeping tonight. 873 00:39:35,137 --> 00:39:36,965 But that's fine. 874 00:39:47,206 --> 00:39:48,068 [crickets chirping] 875 00:39:55,827 --> 00:39:56,862 [Josh exhales sharply] 876 00:39:56,965 --> 00:39:59,206 I had this terrible nightmare that I was 877 00:39:59,310 --> 00:40:02,034 sleeping in an abandoned village on a remote island 878 00:40:02,137 --> 00:40:04,172 guarded by a mythical sea creature. 879 00:40:07,620 --> 00:40:08,517 Oh, right. 880 00:40:11,551 --> 00:40:12,896 Okay. 881 00:40:20,724 --> 00:40:23,034 Look at this, it is beautiful. 882 00:40:23,862 --> 00:40:25,724 And absolutely freezing! 883 00:40:26,758 --> 00:40:27,586 [exhales sharply] 884 00:40:28,172 --> 00:40:29,655 We're in Canada. 885 00:40:29,758 --> 00:40:31,344 Is there a Timmy Hortons here? 886 00:40:31,862 --> 00:40:32,965 Some coffee? 887 00:40:33,965 --> 00:40:35,827 There is no coffee. 888 00:40:35,931 --> 00:40:37,620 There is, however, dive support, 889 00:40:37,724 --> 00:40:39,620 which has just arrived from the mainland. 890 00:40:39,724 --> 00:40:41,517 We're finally going to be able to dive 891 00:40:41,620 --> 00:40:43,068 on the anomaly we found yesterday. 892 00:40:48,551 --> 00:40:51,482 We race back out to the coordinates where we got the sonar hit. 893 00:40:52,482 --> 00:40:53,689 For much of the year, 894 00:40:53,793 --> 00:40:56,241 the water temperature here hovers just above freezing. 895 00:40:56,344 --> 00:40:58,655 So my underwater camera operator and I 896 00:40:58,758 --> 00:41:00,413 gear up for a dive into the frigid 897 00:41:00,517 --> 00:41:02,448 and turbulent depths of the lake. 898 00:41:03,482 --> 00:41:05,965 Tom will stay top-side to guide me. 899 00:41:08,448 --> 00:41:09,758 The wait is over. 900 00:41:09,862 --> 00:41:11,068 Let's see what's down there. 901 00:41:18,034 --> 00:41:19,620 [Josh speaking] 902 00:41:25,689 --> 00:41:27,000 What kind of visibility do you have? 903 00:41:27,827 --> 00:41:31,586 [Josh speaking] 904 00:41:57,344 --> 00:41:59,620 [Josh] Crossing into Canada is easy. 905 00:41:59,724 --> 00:42:02,344 That is if you can ever reach the border. 906 00:42:03,241 --> 00:42:04,517 Okay. 907 00:42:04,620 --> 00:42:05,896 They've one lane open. 908 00:42:06,379 --> 00:42:07,448 It's a good start. 909 00:42:08,517 --> 00:42:10,655 The country that gave us John Candy, 910 00:42:10,758 --> 00:42:12,689 Martin Short, Eugene Levy 911 00:42:12,793 --> 00:42:14,344 can't give me a second guy 912 00:42:14,448 --> 00:42:16,310 working this checkpoint? What? 913 00:42:16,413 --> 00:42:19,413 Where... Where are they? Where is everybody? 914 00:42:19,517 --> 00:42:20,931 This is what happens when you legalize weed 915 00:42:21,034 --> 00:42:22,896 and give away Viagra at discount prices. 916 00:42:23,586 --> 00:42:24,655 Nobody comes to work. 917 00:42:24,758 --> 00:42:26,862 It's also a national holiday today probably. 918 00:42:26,965 --> 00:42:28,862 Maple Syrup Remembrance Day. 919 00:42:28,965 --> 00:42:30,551 Once hockey season starts, 920 00:42:30,655 --> 00:42:32,482 nothing gets done. 921 00:42:32,586 --> 00:42:35,241 Oh, my God, it's barely moving. 922 00:42:36,103 --> 00:42:37,620 For the love of Ryan Gosling, 923 00:42:37,724 --> 00:42:38,965 come on! 924 00:42:39,068 --> 00:42:40,344 Shouldn't this border just be some guy 925 00:42:40,448 --> 00:42:41,758 on a horse and a funny hat? 926 00:42:43,034 --> 00:42:43,965 This is how it ends. 927 00:42:44,448 --> 00:42:45,586 On a bridge, 928 00:42:45,689 --> 00:42:46,758 halfway to Canada. 929 00:42:47,724 --> 00:42:48,551 Tell you one thing, 930 00:42:48,655 --> 00:42:49,896 Justin Trudeau's office 931 00:42:50,000 --> 00:42:52,482 is gonna get a very strongly-worded email from me. 932 00:42:59,517 --> 00:43:01,448 [Josh] I'm in the middle of Lake Superior, 933 00:43:01,551 --> 00:43:03,034 diving dangerous waters 934 00:43:03,137 --> 00:43:06,034 for the wrecks of two World War I minesweepers. 935 00:43:06,137 --> 00:43:07,827 So far, so good. 936 00:43:17,344 --> 00:43:18,793 [Tom speaking] 937 00:43:18,896 --> 00:43:21,517 Are you seeing, is there, uh, metal or is it just wood? 938 00:43:22,241 --> 00:43:26,000 [Josh speaking] 939 00:43:35,103 --> 00:43:36,000 [Tom speaking] 940 00:43:36,103 --> 00:43:37,068 Pretty busted up. 941 00:43:38,482 --> 00:43:39,655 [Josh speaking] 942 00:43:54,172 --> 00:43:56,689 [Tom speaking] 943 00:43:56,793 --> 00:43:58,862 There should be one on the stern and one on the bow. 944 00:43:59,965 --> 00:44:02,241 [Josh speaking] 945 00:44:31,965 --> 00:44:33,344 You know, of course, we're looking for something 946 00:44:33,448 --> 00:44:35,000 that's 140 feet long. 947 00:44:36,000 --> 00:44:39,448 [Josh speaking] 948 00:44:51,034 --> 00:44:52,793 [Tom speaking] 949 00:44:57,655 --> 00:45:00,689 [Josh speaking] 950 00:45:24,172 --> 00:45:27,586 [Tom speaking] 951 00:45:28,206 --> 00:45:30,275 [Josh speaking] 952 00:45:31,551 --> 00:45:33,379 With the wreck's coordinates recorded, 953 00:45:33,482 --> 00:45:35,965 I return to the surface to review with Tom. 954 00:45:39,758 --> 00:45:40,551 Whoo! 955 00:45:41,172 --> 00:45:43,000 Oh, man, what a wreck. 956 00:45:44,241 --> 00:45:45,655 Absolutely beautiful. 957 00:45:45,758 --> 00:45:47,931 -Not our minesweeper, but... -Yeah. 958 00:45:48,034 --> 00:45:49,310 [Josh] ...a beauty of a wreck. 959 00:45:49,413 --> 00:45:51,172 Massive boilers, 960 00:45:51,275 --> 00:45:53,965 machinery everywhere, I mean, just stunning. 961 00:45:54,068 --> 00:45:56,137 -[Tom] Wow, beautiful. -Absolutely stunning wreck. 962 00:45:56,241 --> 00:45:57,724 If it would've been the minesweepers, 963 00:45:57,827 --> 00:45:59,724 -you would've seen those big guns. -[Josh] Yeah. 964 00:45:59,827 --> 00:46:01,517 You know what, man? Those minesweepers are out here, though. 965 00:46:01,620 --> 00:46:03,172 -[Tom] Yeah. -Don't stop looking for 'em. 966 00:46:03,275 --> 00:46:04,172 [Tom] No, we won't. 967 00:46:04,275 --> 00:46:05,689 -I'm not gonna give up. -[Josh] Good. 968 00:46:05,793 --> 00:46:08,275 -Nothing's gonna hide from that sonar forever. -[Tom] That's right. 969 00:46:08,379 --> 00:46:09,620 -You'll find 'em. -[Tom] Yes. 970 00:46:09,724 --> 00:46:11,103 -You wanna get warm? -[Josh] Yeah, let's get out of here. 971 00:46:11,206 --> 00:46:12,000 Let's do this. 972 00:46:16,000 --> 00:46:18,068 The next day, I return to the mainland, 973 00:46:18,172 --> 00:46:19,758 still buzzing with excitement 974 00:46:19,862 --> 00:46:22,482 at having dived on such a magnificent shipwreck. 975 00:46:23,206 --> 00:46:24,862 Tom's research uncovers 976 00:46:24,965 --> 00:46:27,724 that the boat we dived on is a seldom seen vessel 977 00:46:27,827 --> 00:46:30,689 recorded by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Society. 978 00:46:30,793 --> 00:46:32,827 It isThe Chicago, 979 00:46:32,931 --> 00:46:35,724 a 325-foot package freighter 980 00:46:35,827 --> 00:46:38,517 that became stranded on the rocks off Michipicoten 981 00:46:38,620 --> 00:46:40,931 in October of 1929, 982 00:46:41,034 --> 00:46:44,448 and then slipped into deeper waters, where she broke apart. 983 00:46:45,965 --> 00:46:47,620 Due to its remote location, 984 00:46:47,724 --> 00:46:50,724 The Chicago has been visited by very few divers. 985 00:46:50,827 --> 00:46:52,620 A sadly faded chapter 986 00:46:52,724 --> 00:46:55,137 from the long, tragic maritime history 987 00:46:55,241 --> 00:46:56,689 of the greatest Great Lake. 988 00:46:57,413 --> 00:46:58,620 Largely forgotten, 989 00:46:59,137 --> 00:47:01,586 until now. 990 00:47:01,689 --> 00:47:04,310 But, of course,The Chicago wasn't the only wreck 991 00:47:04,413 --> 00:47:05,827 seen on this expedition. 992 00:47:05,931 --> 00:47:07,034 And the other vessel 993 00:47:07,137 --> 00:47:10,000 was a genuinely uncatalogued anomaly. 994 00:47:12,137 --> 00:47:14,620 The ship Darryl and I found with the ROV 995 00:47:14,724 --> 00:47:16,689 is a brand-new discovery. 996 00:47:16,793 --> 00:47:18,413 Using the footage that we took, 997 00:47:18,517 --> 00:47:20,586 the vessel has now been positively IDed 998 00:47:20,689 --> 00:47:22,206 asThe Satellite, 999 00:47:22,310 --> 00:47:26,068 a tugboat that went down in 1879. 1000 00:47:26,172 --> 00:47:29,586 We just solved a 150-year-old mystery, 1001 00:47:29,689 --> 00:47:31,413 and I'm even happier to report 1002 00:47:31,517 --> 00:47:34,931 that records indicate the crew ofThe Satellite survived. 1003 00:47:37,206 --> 00:47:40,172 The 79 men aboard theInkerman andCerisoles 1004 00:47:40,275 --> 00:47:41,689 were not so lucky. 1005 00:47:41,793 --> 00:47:44,241 They lie not alongside their comrades 1006 00:47:44,344 --> 00:47:45,689 in a field of poppies, 1007 00:47:45,793 --> 00:47:49,172 but in the deep waters of a country that was not their own, 1008 00:47:49,275 --> 00:47:50,689 and there they stay. 1009 00:47:50,793 --> 00:47:51,586 For now. 1010 00:47:53,103 --> 00:47:55,413 Lake Superior may not give up her dead, 1011 00:47:55,517 --> 00:47:58,724 but she has given us an incredible new discovery, 1012 00:47:58,827 --> 00:48:01,793 a hopeful sign that makes me even more convinced 1013 00:48:01,896 --> 00:48:04,103 that one day, one day soon, 1014 00:48:04,206 --> 00:48:06,413 the minesweepers will be found.