0:00:00 > 0:00:03The time is quarter to two, much more news coming up at 2pm. Now on
0:00:03 > 0:00:05BBC News it's time for the travel show.
0:00:05 > 0:00:06show.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09This week on The Travel Show - as the world marks Armistice Day,
0:00:09 > 0:00:19we are in America to explore a fleet of abandoned First World War ships.
0:00:19 > 0:00:26We meet the spider men and women of Guizhou in China.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36The Potomac passes some of Washington, DC's
0:00:36 > 0:00:39most iconic landmarks.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42George Washington, founding father and original president
0:00:42 > 0:00:47of the United States, lived on its banks.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50But follow the river just 30 miles south and you will discover
0:00:50 > 0:00:53a section that is a world away from the capital's
0:00:53 > 0:00:57boulevards and monuments.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00This is Mallows Bay and it is a paradise for kayakers.
0:01:00 > 0:01:04When you look around, you can see why.
0:01:04 > 0:01:11So much natural beauty here and the wildlife is amazing.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14When the bay is full, you might assume it is just
0:01:14 > 0:01:17another beauty spot.
0:01:17 > 0:01:23But as the tide rolls out, its secrets are revealed.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26This is what remains of potentially the largest group
0:01:26 > 0:01:31of World War I ships anywhere in the world.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34And I am here a century after the United States
0:01:34 > 0:01:38entered the conflict.
0:01:38 > 0:01:43The wreckage of around 100 war-era vessels can be discovered here.
0:01:43 > 0:01:48To find out how they ended up 30 miles south of Washington, DC,
0:01:48 > 0:01:52I've arranged to meet marine expert Donald Shomette.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54Hello, there.
0:01:54 > 0:01:55Hello.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57How are you going?
0:01:57 > 0:02:00Lovely to meet you.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03When we entered the war, we didn't have much of an army
0:02:03 > 0:02:08or a navy or much of anything and when we asked the prime minister
0:02:08 > 0:02:13of England, Lloyd George, what can we do,
0:02:13 > 0:02:17he said ships, ships and more ships because one out of every two ships
0:02:17 > 0:02:22was being lost per week that sailed from England to France
0:02:22 > 0:02:25and the supply line was stretched.
0:02:25 > 0:02:32There was the threat of starvation.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35By 1918, we outstripped the United Kingdom,
0:02:35 > 0:02:39Great Britain, in shipbuilding.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42While the makeshift vessels were built at a breathtaking speed,
0:02:42 > 0:02:47they were completed too late to play a major part in the war.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51After the Armistice, the world was in economic turmoil
0:02:51 > 0:02:55and the wooden ships, obsolete.
0:02:55 > 0:02:59With few commercial prospects, the US government sold them off
0:02:59 > 0:03:01to a salvage company.
0:03:01 > 0:03:05The company eventually brought them over here in this burning basin over
0:03:05 > 0:03:08here, they take the ships, burn them down and try and get
0:03:08 > 0:03:10the maximum metal out of them.
0:03:10 > 0:03:11So this is a graveyard for ships?
0:03:11 > 0:03:13Yeah.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16And it's not just First World War vessels which can be found here.
0:03:16 > 0:03:20Donald claims the oldest wreck goes all the way back
0:03:20 > 0:03:23to the American War of Independence, 240 years ago.
0:03:23 > 0:03:31In total, it is estimated the area holds the remains
0:03:31 > 0:03:35of almost 200 ships.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37This wreck is a latecomer.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40She is called the Accomac and she was built in the late 1920s
0:03:40 > 0:03:44as a passenger ferry.
0:03:44 > 0:03:52The crazy thing is, even though this ship has died,
0:03:53 > 0:04:01there is so much living stuff on it.
0:04:01 > 0:04:06On the surface, the wrecks might look like an environmental disaster
0:04:06 > 0:04:12but they have been left alone long enough to be reclaimed by nature.
0:04:12 > 0:04:17Back in my kayak, I am joined by conservationist Joel Dunn.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20You can see why they call these shipwrecks flowerpots.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24In the UK, people pay good money to have biodiversity like this
0:04:24 > 0:04:28on the roofs of their houses.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31What sort of wildlife can I expect to see?
0:04:31 > 0:04:37Bald eagles and ospreys and great blue heron and otters and beavers
0:04:37 > 0:04:40and lots of fish below the water.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43So you could be eaten by the wildlife if you go back
0:04:43 > 0:04:46into the bush there?
0:04:46 > 0:04:48The bay is a relatively shallow water body
0:04:48 > 0:04:51with a typically muddy bottom
0:04:51 > 0:04:54so the shipwrecks create structure
0:04:54 > 0:04:56and from structure, you get diversity
0:04:56 > 0:05:01and from diversity, you get magic.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04Joel, Donald and other conservation groups have teamed up to have
0:05:04 > 0:05:07Mallows Bay recognised as a national marine sanctuary.
0:05:07 > 0:05:13If approved, the site's wildlife and history will come under
0:05:13 > 0:05:17the protection of NOAA,
0:05:17 > 0:05:21the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23So there's 13 national marine sanctuaries in the country,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26we want this to be the 14th.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30It will bring it more attention, partners in funding and some level
0:05:30 > 0:05:37of protection from people who may be harvesting historical artefacts.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40The biggest thing it does, though, is it creates a national tourism
0:05:40 > 0:05:47resource that brings people from all over the world.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51But opinions are divided on these new protections.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55Nearby, I meet some commercial fishermen making their living
0:05:55 > 0:05:58from the river's teeming wildlife.
0:05:58 > 0:06:05Slimy gross thing.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07These are the blue catch.
0:06:07 > 0:06:08They are ugly suckers, aren't they?
0:06:08 > 0:06:09Not real pretty.
0:06:09 > 0:06:10They migrated down.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12It's a million-and-a-half dollar industry just on this river alone...
0:06:12 > 0:06:14They are concerned that turning Mallows Bay
0:06:14 > 0:06:19into a National Marine Sanctuary could down the line lead
0:06:20 > 0:06:21to restrictions on our fishing.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Our problem is the unknowns.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26We want it to put in writing that they that will never
0:06:26 > 0:06:29bother our industry because our livelihoods depend on it
0:06:29 > 0:06:33as they will not give it to us, they say, "We can't do it."
0:06:33 > 0:06:35They say they have no plans to do it.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Won't the extra tourism benefit you?
0:06:37 > 0:06:39No.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42People go into the restaurants who will want to eat,
0:06:42 > 0:06:46there'll be demand for more fish, won't there?
0:06:46 > 0:06:49Our sales will not increase that much in that area.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53People will be going back to DC.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55The organisations behind the nomination insist their plans
0:06:55 > 0:07:00won't impact fishing.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03The final decision is expected next year.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08Donald is adamant about the benefits that sanctuary status will bring
0:07:08 > 0:07:13to Mallows Bay.
0:07:13 > 0:07:19The visitation will enlarge enormously after it becomes
0:07:19 > 0:07:20a National Marine Sanctuary.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23We want Americans to see this, we want the world to see this.
0:07:23 > 0:07:24This is a world-class site.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27These ships were involved in saving the world from totalitarianism.
0:07:27 > 0:07:35This is important.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53Next up, we are travelling to Guizhou in China,
0:07:53 > 0:07:55home of the Miao minority, where for centuries they have
0:07:55 > 0:07:57climbed the region's sheer cliff faces without ropes.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00In the past they did it to collect herbs
0:08:00 > 0:08:02for Chinese medicines, but we heard that they are now
0:08:02 > 0:08:05putting their skills to a different use.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08So we went to meet them, and it goes without saying,
0:08:08 > 0:08:14please don't try this at home.
0:10:24 > 0:10:34The incredible spider men and women of Guizhou in China.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44Next week Carmen is in Japan finding out what's being done to save one of
0:10:44 > 0:10:50the most beautiful train lines.I never expected to be so busy. I
0:10:50 > 0:11:00don't think I'll get seat!And don't forget you can keep up to date in
0:11:00 > 0:11:02real time by following our social media feed.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05All the details should be on your screens right now.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07But for now from me and all the Travel Show team
0:11:07 > 0:11:10here in Maryland, it's goodbye.