PLUNGE Diving
11A Chowder Bay Road
Mosman NSW 2088
Australia
+61 (0)2 9969 5733
info@plungediving.com.au
Opening Hours Sat & Sun: 8am to 6pm
Mon: 10am to 6pm
Tue: CLOSED
Wed: 10am to 6pm
Thurs: 10am to 8pm
Fri: 10am to 6pm
What's Sydney Diving Like?
Sydney has some of the best temperate water scuba diving in the world, particularly admirable when you consider it's one of the world's largest cities. The diversity and abundance of marine life is spectacular.
Visibility can range from 3 meters to 33 meters, with the deeper and further you venture from shore, the clearer the water. That's not to say you won't experience beautifully clean water at some of our shore dive sites.
Water temperature ranges from 22°C in summer to 15°C in winter. We usually wear 5mm wetsuits throughout the year, donning hoods and gloves during the colder months. One thing to remember when looking at Sydney as a scuba diving destination is that it's not tropical diving, so it's not as colourful or warm as the Great Barrier Reef, but it can be just as captivating.
As with scuba diving anywhere, when diving in Sydney you dive appropriate to your environment and site conditions. By this we mean certain dive sites offer certain marine life experiences. For example, some of the best macro scuba diving is at Chowder Bay (also known as Clifton Gardens) directly on PLUNGE's doorstep. When diving this site don't expect to see Grey Nurse Sharks, however if you dive Magic Point, then you can expect to see Grey Nurse Sharks but not as much diversity in macro life.
Sydney is renowned for it's Weedy Sea Dragons, a species only found in the southern states of Australia. Luckily, the Weedy Sea Dragon can be found at a number of sites around Sydney including Shelly Beach, Bare Island, Blue Fish Point and Chapel Steps.
We have quite a variety of ship wrecks in Sydney suitable for scuba divers. Some of these are natural wrecks and some have been sunk as artificial reefs. The Long Reef wreck graveyard has a number of excellent dives, though most of these are below 40 meters and therefore require technical dive training. Sydney is very proud of its history and there are a number of historic wrecks, some located in Sydney Harbour itself, such as The Royal Shepherd and The Centurion. These are in depths suitable for most scuba diving certifications though we always recommend completing a wreck diving certification prior to diving on wrecks.
SCUBA DIVING SITES IN SYDNEY
The following are a number of our favourite dive sites. The diversity and abundance of marine life in Sydney is not realised by many. Let us show you what underwater beauty Sydney has to offer.
SYDNEY'S BOAT DIVES
NORTH SHORE
The Apartments and The Wall
If you are looking for fish life, the Apartments site is the dive for you. This is without doubt the 'fishiest' dive you will encounter. The Apartments consists of a drop off with a large bommie to the seaward side. The dive site starts with The Wall, which drops from 8m to around 15m and continues onto the Apartments, a large bommie, which rises back up to 10m before dropping away past 20m. The space between the bommie and the wall is invariably filled with a huge ball of schooling fish. The bommie also has a cave that runs through it on the seaward side. Large bullrays and the occasional grey nurse shark can be seen at this site. It's magical!
Midway Reef (also know as Dee Why Wide)
Midway Reef consists of a wall that starts at 22m and drops sheer to 29m, where large boulders then fall away to around 36m. There is a profusion of colourful sponge and fish life amongst the boulders, but most dives at Midway are spent exploring the mass of caves and swim-throughs that cut back into the wall. A fantastic dive for the more adventurous diver.
SYDNEY'S NORTH HEAD
Inner Bluefish
A good dive at any time, as well as being one of the best spots when there is a southerly blowing, Inner Bluefish is a nice easy dive. It is a wall that drops from the surface to a depth of 15m. There is always a lot of small life to be found here, as well as pelagic life at the right time of year.
Bluefish Point
26m, blue water, big pelagics... lots of fish life. One of the best dives around Sydney's Heads.
Outer North Head
With a steep drop off from the surface to 22m, lots of pelagic fish life and a number of giant black stingrays as residents.
Fairfax Lookout, Old Mans Hat, Sponge Gardens
This Southern face of North Head slopes from the surface to a depth of about 22m where it meets the sand. Between 15m and the sand a profusion of sponges awaits the diver, with a number of swim-throughs, overhangs and wreckage from numerous shipwrecks.
The Centurion
In 18m of water on flat sandy bottom lies the wreck of the Barque, Centurion. She sank in January 1887 while being towed out through the Heads. There is not a lot remaining of the ship today, but the ballast, anchor chain, pieces of mast and ribbing still makes for an interesting dive. There are still a number of brass pins that held the ship together, and this is one of the few sites where the pineapple fish and red indian fish can be seen.
Sow and Pigs
Although this is only a shallow dive at 10m and is in the harbour, it is a great scrounge around dive when the seas are too big to dive outside the Heads.
SYDNEY'S SOUTH HEAD
South Reef
A nice easy dive with plenty to see and a maximum depth of 15m, South Reef is one of the dives around Sydney where the diver will most likely encounter weedy sea-dragons.
The Royal Shepherd
On the night of the 14th July, 1890 the S.S. Royal Shepherd sank after colliding with the S.S. Hesketh near The Gap. The Royal Shepherd was heading down the coast to collect a cargo of coal and the Hesketh was on her way into port fully loaded with coal. The Royal Shepherd sank quickly and came to rest upright in 30m of water. The wood has dissolved away and left the boiler, engine, driveshaft and prop.
Chapel Steps
Chapel Steps consists of a number of sponge-covered ledges, which step from 6m down to the sand at 20m. In the shallows, slipper crays can be seen amongst the boulders and Weedy Sea Dragons are often to be found among the weed.
Colours Reef
Colours Reef is a reef formation that drops from 24m to 30m. The reef is beautifully bedecked with a mass of sponge life. Due to its depth, it is a dive for the more experienced diver.
The Gap
The Gap is a wall that descends from a depth of around 10m down to 15m where it shelves away to sand at 22m. Pelagic fish life is often found along the wall, and between the base of the wall and the sand the boulders are covered with sponge life.
Gap Caves
The best part of this site is found between 15m and the sand where boulders and swim-throughs are covered with a mass of multi-coloured sponge life and ascidians. The diver can also expect to see a lot of fish life including pelagics. At the right time of year, Port Jacksons sharks are found here in vast numbers.
The Dunbar
During a south-easterly gale, the clipper ship Dunbar sailed into the cliffs just south of The Gap. Of 63 passengers and 59 crew, only a young able seaman would survive the ordeal and only then after spending 2 days trapped on the cliff face. Very little remains of The Dunbar today, primarily due to the fact that the ship sank in only a few meters of water. But having said that, shards of pottery etc, can still be found underneath the boulders and there are still some of the ships anchors to be seen.
SOUTH SYDNEY
MAGIC POINT (MAROUBRA): Grey Nurse Shark Colony
This beautiful dive site is home to a colony of Grey Nurse Sharks, one of the most placid and graceful creatures in our ocean. Looking a little daunting in their size and with protruding teeth, the Grey Nurse Shark has never been known to attack a human when unprovoked and allow divers to sit and watch them as they glide close-by.
The Magic Point site actually has 2 caves or overhangs, within 30 meters of each other. The larger cave is at a depth of 16 meters with a sand circular area in front, which is the perfect viewing area for divers to lie and watch the GNS as they cruise around the mouth of the cave.
Alternatively, you can view the sharks from the rock ledge above the cave.
Moving south-east along the wall, you will come across the smaller cave at 14 meters, where GNS are also found. Swimming north from the caves will take you a little deeper to 22 meters over an area of large boulders out to sand or alternatively you can swim west from the main cave following a series of overhangs at around 14 meters.
The sharks are by far the main attraction for divers to this site. However, there is so much else to see here - Weedy Sea Dragons, Blue Devilfish, Giant Cuttlefish, Port Jackson and Wobbegong sharks to name just a few. It's a fabulous dive site for all experience levels.
SYDNEY'S TECHNICAL DEEP WRECKS
The Birchgrove Park
The 'Birchy' was a 640 tonne collier, which sank off Avalon beach in 1956. Commonly referred to as 'sixty milers', a number of colliers plied the 60 miles between Newcastle and Sydney delivering coal to the power stations. The 'Birchy' rests in around 50m of water and has long been a favourite of the deep diving crowd. Unfortunately she has broken up badly in the last 8 years but is still an excellent dive.
The Dee Why Ferry, The Cooloolie, The Megol etc.
A number of hulks rest in between 45 to 50m of water off Long Reef. Sunk from the mid-seventies onward to create an artificial reef for fishing, they have become the 'meat and potatoes' for the deep diving community. The reef includes the remains of two ferries, a bucket dredge, a tug and a number of hopper barges.
The Myola
The Myola was another of the famed sixty milers. She sank in 1919 during a huge storm and sits at a depth of 48m. This is a great dive for individuals who enjoy deep diving and who have a true appreciation for wreck sites.
SYDNEY'S SHORE DIVES
Chowder Bay (also known as Clifton Gardens)
Just off the beach, right outside the PLUNGE dive shop, is one of the best macro shore dives in Sydney. Clifton Gardens is home to a wonderful colony of seahorses. This site, our house reef, is an easy, relaxing dive with a maximum depth of 15 meters. If diving with us, you can enter the water via our private wharf, or alternatively enter from the beach. There are actually 2 dives that can be done on this site, centred around 2 wharves.
Our private wharf has easy access stainless steel steps that can be used to enter and exit easily. The dive starts around the wharf but quickly moves out into the centre of the bay where a massive naval mooring attracts an amazing variety of sea life to it's chains running in different directions on the sea bed.
This site used to be a military base so there are some interesting wreckage to be seen strewn throughout the bay, including a couple of Admiralty Anchors, the remains of a military jeep, a motorbike and small boat. Perfect marine habitats!
For the second dive, you can enter the water from the beach or halfway along the large public wharf to the right of Clifton Gardens beach. Follow the wharf out to depth, looking closely at the pylons and make your way back to the swimming pool nets for the seahorses.
The marine life at this site is incredibly diverse and includes Anglerfish, Frogfish, Ghostpipe fish, Seahorses, Cuttlefish, Lined-Dumpling Squid, Prickly and Pygmy Leatherjacket, Mosaic Moray, Decorated Crabs and Octopus as well as the usual array of temperate fish life. We've even seen Fairy Penguins and a seal at this site!
Chowder Bay is also one of Sydney's best night dives.
Shelly Beach
Shelly Beach is by far the most popular shore dive on the Northern Beaches, mainly because of its sheltered location and calm, shallow waters. Located along the oceanfront of Manly, this site is easily accessible with a spacious car park, shower and bathroom facilities. Shelly can be dived either on the right side or left side of the beach. Simply follow the wall of boulders on the right or the more weedy terrain on the left, leaving the sand on the other side of you and you won't get lost. This site reaches 12 meters and is home to the famous Weedy Sea Dragon among a host of other temperate fish life.
Fairy Bower
Just along the waterfront from Shelly beach is a little inlet with a small sand area flanked on either side by rocks. This is Fairy Bower and is an easy entry/exit site for the less experienced. Simply enter the water via the sand to approximately 6 meters and follow the rocks either left or right of the inlet opening. The maximum depth here is 10 meters. Keep an eye out for the old pipes where Octopus and Wobbegong's hang out.
Fairlight
On the harbour side of Manly, a lovely little cove, Fairlight is usually a very calm, easy dive. The dive simply follows a rock wall running parallel to the shore at 7 meters where schools of fish hang out and beautifully coloured nudibranchs lie. The remains of a small wooden boat, sits just off the wall on the sand.
Harbord or Freshwater
North of Manly you'll find Freshwater Beach. North of the beach is a rocky headland which is the Harbord dive site. There are two means of access. If conditions are calm enough, you can jump off the headland and swim around towards the beach until you reach a channel in the rocks leading to the swimming pool, or alternatively, simply enter and exit the water by the channel and follow the rocks along the point. The average depth of this site is 12 meters with lots of boulders, caves, swim-throughs and overhangs to explore. A really pretty fishy dive.
Bare Island
Located on the southern side of Sydney city and joined to the mainland by a wooden bridge, Bare Island is a very popular dive site as it offers a number of dives in the one site. Depending on your experience, you can either, circumnavigate the island, concentrate on the reefs west of the island, follow the deeper wall down to 20 meters or simply dive the right or left side of the island. The marine life is abundant with lots of Weedy Sea Dragons, Old Wives, Mado's, Morwong, Groupers, Wrasse, Leatherjackets, Flutemouths, Goatfish, Damsels, Octopus, Moray Eels and Drummers to name just a few. Bare Island is a site where you might see the rarer fish, such as Red Indian fish and Pineapple fish. It's also another great night diving spot!
Shark Point
Shark Point is located on the north side of Clovelly Bay in Sydney's eastern suburbs and only eight kilometres from the city. It's an absolute pearl of a dive site, but should only be attempted by experienced divers in calm weather. Entry is a giant-stride from the headland on northern point of the bay. Swim out on the surface about 15 meters and descend to approximately 8 meters. Head in a south-easterly direction to depths of 26 meters. The terrain begins with big boulders until you reach a wall with lots of overhangs and then reef down to sand. The fish life is great with Wobbegong sharks, Blue Devilfish, Kingfish and Shovelnose Rays cavorting among the usual temperate marine life. Because of its depth and exposure, this is a site where you never know what you might come across!
