‘Ship traps’ describes a phenomenon where northern and southern swells, strong channel currents, strong consistent trade winds and fringing reefs force unsuspecting vessels into areas of harm – resulting in concentrated shipwrecks. The north shore of the Island of Lānaʻi, locally referred to as “Shipwreck Beach,” is the best example of this phenomenon. Here, the channel acts as a funnel, depositing material directly onto Shipwreck Beach.
A constant reminder of Shipwreck Beach is the last one – from the US Navy, YOGN-42. Contrary to some of the reports on this vessel, it is neither a WWII Liberty ship nor was it even a motorized vessel. The ship sitting on the reef at Shipwreck Beach is actually a non-self-propelled Navy gasoline barge. YOGN-42 survived the war, but was stricken from the active register in 1949 and abandoned on Shipwreck Beach sometime after that.
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