Podcast
Image of Dave Harasti, UW photographer extraordinaire diving on rebreather in Brisbane, 2005
Newsletter
We value your information and will not disclose it without your consent.
Privacy Statement
Gallery Images
Quick Links
United Divers is our favourite dive shop
ILB Computing hosts Bluebeyond.com.au
Search BlueBeyond
Diving Sydney
Australia’s largest city, Sydney was the home of the Sydney 2000
Olympic Games. Sydney diving offers a lot to the diver, with a large
number of dive operators, and dive sites ranging from great shore dives
to deep offshore reef and wreck dives.
For those interested in an easy shore dive, there are good sites with
plenty to see at Shelly Beach and Fairlight (Manly area), Clifton
Gardens (Balmoral), Camp Cove (Watson’s Bay), North Bondi (Bondi
Beach), Gordon’s Bay (Clovelly), Bare Island (La Perouse), Inscription
Point (Botany Bay), Oak Park (Cronulla) and Shiprock (Dolan’s Bay).
More demanding shore dives include Shark Point (Clovelly) and Mahon
Pool (Maroubra). With all shore dives, make sure you assess the
conditions on the dive, and dive within your limits.
Some of my favourite boat dive sites include Barrens Hut, Osborne
Shoals, Fish Reef, Marley Point and the Balcony off Cronulla, The Gap
and Colours Reef off Sydney Harbour, and the Apartments, the Wall and
Dee Why Wide, off Long Reef.
Sydney is home of many diveable shipwrecks, and to do them justice, I
have set-up a separate Diving Sydney’s Wrecks page to discuss the
wrecks.
Bare Island
At the end of Anzac Parade in the eastern Sydney suburb of La Perouse
lies one of Sydney’s most popular shore diving locations - Bare Island.
This area is home to at least 5 distinct dive sites that can be enjoyed
time and again by the novice or experienced diver. Bare Island is a
haven for underwater photographers, and can be a most enjoyable place
to enjoy a day’s diving, coupled with a family picnic.
Bare Island is small island about 60m off the mainland, connected by a
bridge. The site of a colonial era fort, the island was home to a
significant portion of one of the Mission Impossible movies.
The 2 most popular dives in the area are around the walls of the island
itself. Entry is from the rock platform on either the main land, or the
island proper - pick the right entry point to suit the conditions on
the day. The bridge connecting the mainland to the island is the
natural delineation point for the 2 main dives - which are known as
Bare Island East (Left) and Bare Island West (Right). Both are
wonderful spots, and each a bit different from the other.
The eastern side drops quickly to 10m as you follow the island wall
around. This is a good area for weedy sea dragons and a whole host of
nudibranchs on the various rock formations. This is the area where I
found a lovely pygmy pipehorse. This area also makes a great night dive.
The western side gets deeper - its easy to find 20m and beyond here.
Around this side I can find a different variety of fishlife, and there
is an area here where sea horses and blue devil fish are regularly
found. Its also a great dive.
Another site worth a look is the wall along the mainland rockplatform
on the eastern side. I usually do this at the end of a dive to the
eastern side.
Another occasional dive is to swim the entire circumference of the
island. You need to be keeping a reasonable pace and good on your air.
I’ve only done this once, because its not really compatible with the
meandering pace of a photo dive. It would make a good fun thing to do
on a scooter.
Nearby are some other sites that are west of Bare Island, extending from the mainland. Well worth a look-see.
Barrens Hut
Located south of Jibbon Headland on the southern side of Port Hacking,
Barrens Hut has to be one of the best dive sites in the Sydney area.
With a large wall dropping from about 15m to around 27m, Barrens Hut
attracts marine life in massive quantities, and with a variety that is
hard to find. I would rate this as one of my absolute favourite dive
sites in Sydney.
The distinctive feature of Barrens Hut is the wall, which includes a
tunnel that cuts about 15m back into the wall, ending with a chimney
that rises about 7m out into open water. At the top side there are some
large rock falls with resident blue groper, and one of the most curious
Bleekers devilfish I’ve met. Further north along the wall is a small
cavern under a large rock, again with plenty to see. Following the wall
around further you come to the split, a cutting in the rock face with a
large collection of gorgonians and sponges.
Most of the times I’ve dived Barrens I’ve been blessed with clear
waters, its location providing lots of opportunity to take advantages
of ocean currents that sweep away the muck, and bring in its place
clear, fresh water.
Equal to any dive I’ve done in Sydney, Barrens Hut is well worth the
effort. If you want to dive Barrens, I suggest Sea Tamer II, one of the
best charter boats I’ve come across (see Dive Operators).
The Balcony
Located south of Jibbon Point south of Cronulla on the coastline of the
Royal National Park, the Balcony offers a lot to the diver wanting rich
underwater terrain, swimthroughs, a small rock wall, and fish life.
Situated close into the coastal cliffs, the Balcony has a maximum depth
of about 20m, thus being appropriate to all levels of divers. Being
close in to the cliffs, the Balcony can only be dived in the calmest of
conditions, such as when the westerly winds are blowing.
The key feature of the Balcony is a large concave wall with a maximum
depth of about 16m. In and around this area are lots of Port Jackson
sharks, stingrays, schools of yellowtail and bullseye, a family of
groper and several good swimthroughs. Further east, the Balcony deepens
out, reaching a maximum depth of about 20m, with a small wall on the
other side of a series of 5 or 6 swimthroughs. Follow this wall north
or south to view lots of sponges.
Camp Cove
The next beach around from the famous Doyle's of Watsons Bay pub and seafood restaurant is a rather interesting spot called Camp Cove. Famous for being the location where members of the colonising First Fleet camped for their first night in what has become Australia, Camp Cove is one of the more expensive beach areas in Sydney.
A protected bay inside Sydney Harbour, Camp Cove is popular as both training location, a standby dive site when all else fails and as a night dive. In fact, I made my first two training dives in Camp Cove, and still enjoy getting back there when the opportunity raises itself. I find it to be an excellent dusk and night dive, with a seriously easy entry and exit.
There are three areas commonly dived at Camp Cove - the Eastern End, the Western end and the middle reef. The two ends are dives around the walls that make up the peninsulas, while the middle reef is a flat reef in between the former two. For mine, the Eastern End is the most interesting most of the time.
At day time, Camp Cove is best suited to a training or refresher dive, or a standby if all else fails. Visibility can be limited (5m is good), and there are many other great sites close by.
Its at dusk and night time when Camp Cove comes into its own. Its at this time that the site can be very interesting, and very productive for the photographer. Sea horses, pipefish, octopus and squid make regular appearances. It is a great muck dive, and we easily find ourselves spending over an hour on a dusk dive here.
The only cautions with this site involve parking (its hard to get in the day, and the car park is a little dark and isolated in the evening), boat traffic (recreational boaters love this spot) and fishermen off the point. Its also best to avoid diving Camp Cove (along with many Sydney Harbour sites) after extensive rain - it may be a little polluted.
A great dive - enjoy!
Fairlight
Fairlight is located on Sydney Harbour, one suburb back from Manly on
the road from Sydney. The dive site itself is a very easy dive, but one
that is very rewarding for those willing to take the time to look
around and swim slowly. The main feature of the site is a low wall that
runs parallel to the beach in about 8-10m. Another key feature is the
wreckage of 2 small boats, laying just off the wall’s western end. They
aren’t much in the way of wrecks, but are of interest due to the life
they attract, along with the wall.
Entry at Fairlight is off a rock platform at the western end of the
beach. The site is diveable in most conditions except a south-easterly
wind which can blow things out. After entering the water, swim on the
surface about 25m, until you are in water about 4-5m. Drop down and
follow one of the sand gullies to the south. When you get to about 6-8m
you should encounter the wall. Drop over this and you will now be in
about 8m. Best profile is to go to the left (east) and follow the wall
along. At the end, turn around and come back, and retrace your steps up
the sand gully. Only a few metres along from where you dropped over the
wall, if you look to your right (south) you should make out the wrecks,
which are laying end to end. They are about 5m from the wall, and
should be visible in most conditions.
This site is macro heaven - a muck diver’s dream. Nudis abound here,
with regular sightings of most temperate species. This is one of the
best nudi spots in Sydney, and on a single dive I have spotted A.
varia, C. splendida, H. bennetti, G. atromarginata, C. amoena, P.
ianthina, and Jorunna sp. Also worth keeping an eye out for are the
feather duster worms - these are some of the biggest of these that I
have seen anywhere, with some the size of a tennis ball.
Maximum depth is about 10m so its diveable by beginners and more
serious muck divers alike. This is my favourite shore dive on Sydney’s
north shore.
Fish Reef
This is a small, deep reef lying in about 28m of water just out of Port
Hacking. Roughly circular in shape, it is just big enough to
circumnavigate on a no-deco, air dive. Obviously with the use of
enriched air, this can be extended easily.
This reef rises only a few metres off the bottom, but attracts a solid
amount of fishlife. I’ve regularly seen some of the biggest and
friendliest weedy sea dragons at this site, some that are so curious
they stop and watch you. Kingfish, tailor, yellowtail, bullseye and a
variety of wrasse are common visitors.
Of all the southern Sydney sites, Fish Reef has one of the best ranges
of nudibranchs. Aeolid and dorid varieties are common. On one occasion
I saw a pair of nudibranchs about the size of a sea cucumber (about
10cm in length). I have no idea what type they were, and have not been
able to identify them in books such as that of Neville Coleman.
Like the other southern Sydney sites, Fish Reef is regularly visited by
Sea Tamer II, and finishes with a warm cup of tomato soup and some Mars
bars.
Gordon’s Bay
Gordon’s Bay is located in the eastern suburb of Clovelly. Also known
as Thompsons Bay (or “Thommos”), Gordon’s Bay would have to rank as one
of the easiest shore dives in Sydney, and for that reason, is popular
with various dive centres and schools as a training site.
To access the site, drive to the end of Clovelly Road. Here you’ll find
a car park that is located on a small peninsular. On the northern side
of the car park is Clovelly Bay, a sea pool with a beach and easy
boardwalks either side. It is a good night dive, but divers cannot use
the pool during the day during summer time. On the southern side of the
car park is Gordon’s Bay.
The entry to the bay is simple - follow the path down that starts just
behind the large white house, and is marked at its start by a rock with
a plaque about the bay and the divesite. The path goes all the water to
water, and except in low tide, actually continues a few metres into the
water. Be careful as you can get some waves as you enter. Get out to
waist depth, then don fins and swim out about 50m in a line from the
entry point to the obvious green house on the southern side of the bay.
Descend here in about 3.5-4m.
At the bottom, you should quickly find a chain, which is a nature trail
around the most interesting parts of the site. This will take you past
some boulders and a rock wall that drops from 5m to 11m in a couple of
steps. Deepest depth of the site is about 13m.
Marine life here is characteristic of Sydney, with mado, bream,
morwong, leatherjackets and various wrasse being common. There has been
a large blue groper at this site for many years, nicknamed “Bazza”.
An easy dive, best suited to flat inshore seas associated with westerly
winds, or moderate seas from the north-northeast. Nearest diving
services are Deep 6 Diving in Clovelly, Pro Dive Coogee, Dive Centre
Bondi Road or Sydney Dive Academy, Maroubra.
Oak Park
Located in Cronulla, Oak Park is a dive site located off shore of a
beach and swimming pool that go by the same name, so its easy to find
in most street directories. A popular training ground, its hard to get
much deeper than about 12m here, and is a good dive site for all levels
of divers.
Entry is from the area of the pool, from one of two spots. Either from
the left seaward corner of the pool (over a rock platform), or walking
in from the shore on the right hand side. The site is at the meeting
point of the Hacking River and Bate Bay, so is fairly protected, but be
careful in a south-easterly wind. From either entry, swim south until
you are over a sandy area, drop down and swim to the east until you
encounter a low wall / rock platform.
The sponge gardens here are quite extensive, although many of the
shallower ones have been beaten around by the sheer number of divers
who dive the site. The further out you get, the better it can be.
Another good site for nudibranchs, I first encountered the species Tambja verconis here. Most of the usual suspects can be seen.
Bigger fish also abound here, and I have seen big schools of yellow
tail, pike and some kingfish, and have seen majestic eagle rays
swimming by.
A good second dive to do after diving Shiprock on the high tide.
Shelly Beach
Said to be the only west facing beach on the east coast of Australia,
Shelly Beach is perhaps one of the most popular dive training sites in
Sydney. Protected from almost any weather, except perhaps a really
strong westerly, Shelly Beach is a simple walk-in walk-out type dive
with a maximum depth of around 12m.
The site has a sandy bottom, which is rather bland in most places,
although if you look carefully you may find some serpent eels, and the
occasional octopus under an isolated rock. Rays also make their homes
in the sand, so take care of where you kneel. The main feature is the
wall which runs along the right hand side of the site as you head out.
Follow the wall all the way out to the point where it turns north, and
keep following it around. Just off this point is a motorcycle and a few
other bits and pieces worth pottering around in.
You get a few port jackson sharks around the place, and at night time
this site comes alive with considerably more fishlife than the same
site during the day. In fact, this site is perhaps better as one of the
easiest and most relaxed night dives you could do. Parking is
plentiful, and a lovely parkland makes a nice picnic area.
Shiprock
Located near Dolan’s Bay at Lilli Pilli, Shiprock is a marine reserve
with excellent diving for novices through to advanced divers. It is a
really easy entry/exit from behind a sheltered rock (that looks like a
ship, funnily enough) at the bottom of a track at the end of Shiprock
Road.
As Shiprock is located some way up Hacking River, it is extremely
tidal, and you can only dive it safely on a slack tide - about 20
minutes either side of high or low tide. Generally, high tide is
suggested, as visibility is best at this time (or at least better).
Don’t expect too much out of the visibility, it is upstream, and 5m is
average, and 10m excellent. You can, however, have a great dive there
in low visibility.
From the entry point swim out about 20m east, and drop down their to
about 5m depth. Then continue ESE on your compass and in a few kicks
you should find a wall that drops down to about 12-14m. Generally turn
right and head along the wall.
The key feature of this site is the bubble cave, a small crevice that
two divers can surface into at about 12m, and actually talk to each
other. Try not to breathe in here - its full of CO2, so inhale from
regulator only. Continue along the wall until you reach your turnaround
point (gas or time) and then head back, and ascend near where you
descended, or closer to shore.
Be careful of boats here - you get a lot of speed boats zipping
through, so I strongly recommend ascending on a line, or as close to
shore as you can.
The main thing to watch out for here, however, is other divers. As the
site can only be dived at certain times, you get a lot of people diving
at the same time. The positive side of this is that for a first timer,
it is simple to work out entry and descent points ;-) .
Marine life here is wonderful, with some of the nicest and largest
ranges of anemones and soft corals found around Sydney. There is also
lots of small stuff - angler fish, nudibranchs and sand eels. Shiprock
is the only dive site where I have seen the dorid nudibranch
Chromodoris daphne (although now I’ve seen the same species at Bare
Island), yet I can find this critter here most times. The abundance of
small stuff, plus the generally limited visibility, means it is a macro
photographer’s and muck diver’s haven. Leave the wide angle lenses at
home, and get those extension tubes out.
A great dive site, that adds another option to Sydney diving.