TPW TV – TX CLIPPER UPDATE: Checking in on the Texas 
Clipper ten years after it became an artificial reef in the 
Gulf of Mexico… ahead on Passport to Texas.

This is Passport to Texas 

Ten years ago, TPW sent a ship called The Texas 
Clipper to the gulf floor to serve as an artificial reef. 

16— Texas Parks & Wildlife has taken a section of the Gulf of 
Mexico that was once a barren dessert, and created an enormous 
ecosystem of 180,000 square feet of substrate, to bring new life for 
both the fisherman and the divers. 

Tim O’Leary takes sport divers out to explore the Texas 
Clipper which now teems with marine life.

06— This is a world class wreck. I want Texans and Texas to get excited.

The Clipper is an oasis for the marine life of the Gulf of 
Mexico. Dale Shively headed the project for TPW.

30— This is quite an adventure to come back 10 years later and see that it’s 
a tremendous dive opportunity, it’s a great place for fishing, and it’s a great 
place for marine habitat. I think it’s a great dive destination. Lots of marine 
life, a lot of coral, juvenile reef species of all different types. You’ve got 
thousands and thousands of square feet of hard surface area and you can 
see that where the marine life is growing on the ship itself. I would consider 
this a big success for an artificial reef.

The TPW TV series on PBS airs a segment on the Texas 
Clipper, then and now, the week of November 19. Check 
local listings.

The Sport Fish Restoration program supports our 
series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti. 






	
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