The Ocean Freeze, originally named the Scott Mason-Chaite, was a 297-foot long refrigerated freighter sunk as an artificial reef just north of Pacific Reef, 26 miles from Key Largo. The Ocean Freeze was owned by a Vietnamese company that went bankrupt, then bought at auction by a lawyer who was also one of the co-owners of the Coconut Grove Sloppy Joe’s. Over time, the lawyer managed to ignore U.S. Coast Guard citations, numerous fines and docking fees, only to somehow manage to get a bill sponsored by State Representative Bruno Barreiro (R-Miami Beach) before the legislature that would pay him $165,000 for the ship to use as an artificial reef. However, Governor Chiles spotted the allocation and vetoed the bill. With pressure mounting, the attorney finally donated the vessel to the Atlantic Gamefish Foundation who subsequently sank it as an artificial reef on July 28, 1998.

The Ocean Freeze is completely inverted pointing northward, providing few opportunities for a grapnel hook to purchase the wreck. The rudder, turned hard to port, is the highest portion of the wreck with the sand bottom found at 256 feet. A row of open portholes with the intact glass swing plates can be found along the stern sides of the ship. Other artifacts can also still be found amongst the wreck as I found one of the ships running lights resting partially buried in the sand adjacent to the bridge. The wreck rests on her stern superstructure which suspends the cargo hold and the remaining length of the ship high off the bottom. This support provides between 15-20 feet of clearance under the wreck, creating a neat swim-thru for visiting divers, with miscellaneous wreckage spilled out from the interior and down to the sand below. A solitary picnic table happens to be resting in the sand next to the portside of the wreck, as is a tire suspended from the hull overhead, resembling an old tire swing. Under the hull amidst swarms of baitfish, several doors to the forepeak remain open. This is indeed a great dive, though it will be a shame when the superstructure eventually collapses under the weight of the wreck, thus eliminating the unique swim-thru under the inverted hull.

The wreck has just begun to be incorporated into a thriving habitat with moderate oyster and coral growth on the hull. The marine life was not as robust as found at other sites, with the lack of any bull sharks being a notable absent species. However, it does appear that schools of juvenile fish had already found the wreck as large swarms of small red snapper swim along the hull. Looking closely at the wreck, a plethora of bristle worms crawling along the peeling blue paint of the hull can be seen.