Inside ‘Island of the Dead’ surrounded by sharks, shipwrecks & radioactive waste and why horrid stench keeps humans away

TOXIC waste, sharks, shipwrecks and stench are just a few of the reasons the Farallon Islands are rarely visited. 

The “Islands of the Dead” are known as one of the most dangerous sites in the world with the many shipwrecks off the treacherous rocks that surround them.

A 38-ft yacht smashed into the rocks in April 2012 and capsized in the annual Full Crew Farallones Race, killing five of the eight people onboard. 

A ship burst into flames and three people were killed in 1941 when a United States Coast Guard vessel struck a rock.  

And a sailor named Jim Gray became lost at sea in 2007 on his voyage from San Francisco to the islands, with his body never found.

The Islands, based off the San Francisco coast in California, are closed to the public. 

They are also home to bloodthirsty sharks who gather from September to December to feed on sea lions and elephant seals. 

The average length of the great white sharks is 13 to 16 ft with a weight of 1,500 to 2,340 lbs. 

But the sharks don’t always rule the roost – a killer whale was spotted feasting on a great white off the coast of the island in 1997. 

There has been a reported decline in shark activity on the island, according to Farallon National Wildlife Refuge manager Gerry McChesney.

He told SF Gate: “Back in the 90s and early 2000s, they would average like an attack a day.

“Two years ago, they saw only like six attacks a season.

“Last year was a little busier. 

“We’re not exactly sure what’s going on. 

“We’re also seeing a decline in the elephant seals and it could be tied to that.”

ISLANDS’ INFAMOUS STENCH

One of the most noticeable things about it, however, is the stench.

The island’s infamous odour can be traced back to the bird poo and other animal faeces from the large sea bird population. 

Rebecca Johnson, who spent two weeks on the island with the California Academy of Sciences for research, says: “Once I took a coast guard helicopter to the islands and as we approached the pilots were like, what is that terrible smell?

“We could smell it inside the helicopter.”

The Farallon Islands are also known as a popular radioactive waste dump site from the 1940s to the 1970s, which adds to the smell.

The exact location of the dumped containers are unknown, making it potentially hazardous to visit. 

By 1960, 7,500 containers (55-gallon steel drums) had been dumped in the area, however most of the waste had decayed by 1980. 

The radioactive hull of the USS Independence, which was loaded with barrels of radioactive waste, was scuttled in the area. 

The wreck was discovered in 2015.