Refresher Scuba Dive - Sydney - Alexandria

Bare Island jutts out dramatically from the mainland and is accessible on foot from a long wooden walkway. The right side of the island is protected and good for diving even when the sea is rough. Multiple dive sites exist around the island making it a place that you can keep coming back to.

If you dive the right side you will initially drop down to about 15 metres and cross over a small reef. If you turn left and head southwest you will cross a sandy bottom and wind up at the main reef. Flatheads, numbrays, rays and flounder can be seen half buried in the sand so be careful if you touch the bottom.  There is a gutter that you can swim through between rocks and kelp near the reef.

The marine life on the reef can be very plentiful. Noteworthy are the pygmy seahorses and weedy sea dragons one can see here. There are also several kinds of sharks that can be seen here, namely grey nurse sharks, port jackson and the occasional dusky whaler. At about 20 metres is a low overhang around which a lot of sea life exists. There are catfish, Sydney cardinalfish, yellow-banded sea perch, and half-banded perch. On your way to this cave are colorful sponges, giant ascidians, lace coral, Bairds solitary coral, and sea tulips.

If you dive down on the left side you will land on a sandy bottom at about 6 metres. The bottom slowly slopes down as you proceed southeast. There are overhangs and caves as you swim along and you may be able to see wobbegongs, port jacksons and pineapplefish among other things. Sponges and nudibranchs can also be seen on the rocks here and sea dragons are around
 

Freshwater Sydney - Description comming soon

Gordons Bay is located North of Coogee and offers easy diving in calm conditions, with a maximum depth of 14 meters. This site is especially suitable for novice divers and night Dives. Entry into the dive is directly from the carpark, just follow the path down into the water. One of the unique features is the nature trail, defined by a chain which you can follow around the site (note the chain can disappear under the sand at some points) . The trail is approximately 600ms and the dive itself will take on average 30-40 minutes. Features include a small wall imaginatively named "The Wall" and is considered the most interesting part of the dive. Gordons Bay is protected by a reef called the 'Bommie". You will find Sydney's usual suspects on this dive, Blue Groper, Sting Rays, Wrasse , Nudibranchs ,Goat Fish and Port Jackson in winter.

Enter from the shore along the right hand side of the beach (facing the sea). Keep the rock wall on your right as you head out and on your left as you head back - an easy dive site to navigate. As with any site, Shelly Beach is weather dependant - generally protected during easterly winds, which makes it diveable when a lot of other sites in the area are blown out. Viz can vary from 3 to 15M but is usually clearer during the winter months. On a good day, this is a spectacular site!

The best of the site is further out than most people get to and you do need reasonable air consumption to reach it. Swim out following the rock wall to your right, until it turns northwards and starts to peter out. Take a heading and keep going following the remnants of the rock wall on the sea floor and you should come to a kelp bed. Weedy seadragons are frequently found here and the depth should not exceed 12m.

Along the wall and amongst the big boulders, other marine life seen regularly is the divine eastern blue gropers (wrasse), schools of yellowtail and big eyes, mados and often pike. Red Morwongs, goatfish in the sandy area, flatheads and often ludericks and old wives. Under ledges shrimps galore and often juvenile lionfish. Port Jackson sharks and giant cuttlefish are common in season and wobbegongs sleep in crevices and under the big boulders.