 |
|
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MUDGEE'S ONLY DIVE CENTRE |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |
FLAT ROCK
This site is at the north end of Soldiers Beach at Norah Head. A giant stride off the rock shelf gets you in for a dive around kelp coverd boulders with large crevices and some swimthroughs. A highlight of the dive is some large crevices to swim through with a sponge wall, swim through and a great landscape. The exit is onto a sand spit that connects the rockshelf with the mainland and a bit of a walk back up to the carpark. Maximum depth is around 9m and care needs to be taken with the entry. Please check with us about where to step off the rocks.
LIGHTHOUSE
We have a few dives at this site. One stepping off the rocks at the "Lighthouse Fingers" and swimming around a large bommie. Another is "Lighthouse Bay" which is a rocky bay with crevices, overhangs and boulders. Both sites are magnificent with depths up to 12m however they are weather dependent as the rockshelves are exposed to the swell.
CATHERINE HILL BAY COAL LOADER
A nice easy dive. Bits and pieces of wreck scattered around the bay and under the old coal loader. Old Chain, pipes, and the Boiler from the Wallarah Wreck are popular with divers. Depths of 8-9m. Now that the track down has been closed it is impossible to get to from the road by car. Now we have to get into the site via the Surf Life Saving Club at Catherine Hill Bay. Its a bit of a walk across sand but well worth it. Weave your way in and around the pilons and have a nice scout around to see all the bits and peices left behind from days gone by.
 |  |  |  |  |
CATHERINE HILL BAY TRENCH (SCREECH POINT)
To the right of the Coal Loader along the beach is the site called the Trench. This is a great dive for photographers. Sponge gardens, hard corals, soft corals, nudibranchs, amazing fish life. Lots of nooks and crannies. Max Depth 12m.
 |  |  |  |  |
CATHERINE HILL BAY DESOTO INLET
Desoto Inlet about 75 to 100 metres long and 10 metres wide for most of its length. There are still some remains of an old car wreck driven off the cliff at the head of the inlet. In millpond conditions you can enter and exit the dive in the inlet but in bigger swells you cannot exit here, you would swim around to the trench. The bottom of the inlet is about 6 metres. Explore the head of the inlet, there is the wreckage of the car there and some great large overhangs. Max depth 16m.
 |  |  |  |  |
TERRIGAL HAVEN
A Very easy and relaxing dive. You are sure to be hassled by the Blue Grouper they are used to the divers and will swim along side you. Further out along the rocky wall to your right is a great anchor, swarming with schools of fish. Further along you might be lucky to see the weedy sea dragon and the eastern blue devil fish. This is a great night night dive also. Max depth 12m
|  |  |  |  |
TERRIGAL SKILLION CAVE
Can be done as a boat dive, but is easy enough to do as a shore dive if conditions are calm. This site can be treacherous if there is a swell. Swim along the rock wall and you come to a cave with a large boulder in the middle of the rock crevice. The walls are covered with sponges and anemones. Shrimp, blue grouper, wrasse and squid frequent this area. On the rare occasion you may even see a Grey nurse come into this area. Max depth 23m
 |  |
SWANSEA BRIDGE
Depth: 14m/45ft, Rating: Novice to Intermediate
The remains of the original wooden bridge, The pylons of the new bridges discarded building materials, shopping trolleys and bikes have created a huge man-made reef. This is the most concentration of fish that divers will see in the area. School of snapper, bream, whiting, tailer, morwong, sweep, leatherjackets, kingfish wrasse and other tropical species will be seen on this dive. The bridge can only be dived when the tide stops so it is important to check with the shop for dive times. This site can be very harzardous if dived incorrectly.
 |  |  |  | |
The Information below is from Terrigal Dive:
http://www.terrigaldive.com.au/book-a-reef-dive
Scenic Highway. Terrigal NSW 2260 (02)4384 1219
The dive locations range from sponge and coral covered reefs to dramatic drop offs with underwater caves and swim throughs. Many ships have foundered off the central coast and their skeletal remains can be found on the sea bed. These then become artificial reefs and havens for great schools of fish.
Below is a short list of some of our favourite dive sites of the central coast, with drawings of two of the most frequently dived, ‘Foggy Cave’ and the ‘Skillion Cave’ both boat dives but, if calm, the ‘Skillion Cave’, is a shore dive.
Terrigal Haven and Surrounds
These are all shore dives accessible and just a short walk from Terrigal Dive Centre. The ‘Haven’ in front of the Dive Centre is a beach entry. Out under the moored boats is a sea grass bed, hiding a multitude of small fish. Diving in this area you will sure to be accosted, if that’s the right word, by one or more of our giant black sting rays, some up to 2m across. Residents of the haven for many years, they are used to the divers and will swim along side you. Further out along the rocky wall is a giant anchor, big blue gropers and schools of yellowtail. This is the training area for our dive school but it a very pleasant, non stressful dive for divers of all experience. It is a very calm second dive of the day spot and is an absolute blast as a night dive where a 2m black sting ray coming suddenly into your torch beam can really startle you.
The remains of the Lord Ashley ship wreck, a 3 masted, sailing steam ship, sunk in 1877 can be seen in 7m of water just on the out side of the reef and sponge gardens can be explored by following the reef down to 18m.
A well known, grey nurse shark dive from March to April. But a terrific dive any other time. No photo could do it justice but well known marine illustrator, Clarrie Lawler, has produced the drawings shown below. It is a boat dive 5.5 nm from Terrigal & 3nm offshore
This is a well known dive site. It is a popular shore dive when the sea is calm but can be treacherous if there is a swell. Please feel free to come into the Dive Centre and ask if the conditions are safe on the day. This dive site is also frequently dived as a boat dive, at least making for a safe entry and exit. Again brilliant marine illustrator Clarrie Lawler has provided us with a map of the entry point and of the cave itself, something impossible to produce with a camera. To drop off the 12m cliffs that surround this cave is awesome in it self but once inside the cave, the walls are a kaleidoscope of colour from ascidian sponges and coral on the walls and at the right time of the day, the sunlight streaming in through the open roof gives a cathedral like quality.
A pretty, shallow dive, with an underwater headland that attracts dense school of yellowtail and bulls eyes. Whilst out on the sand of the adjacent gutter you are sure to find Weedy Sea Dragons.
Fifeshire Reef 14m-18m North Avoca.
A series of fingers of reef with sandy gutters in between. The rocks and their walls are a host to sponges corals and ascidians one of the best locations on the coast for benthic marine life.
The Pinnacle 17m-27m – Bateau Bay
Every dive centre seems to have a site called ‘The Pinnacle’, we are no exception. This curious rock formation comes up of the sea bed at 27m like a block of apartments. Only about 30m across at the base, the almost bald, dome like top is a mere 17m deep and 10m across. Big schools of fish hang around this structure.
Galava Wreck 50m – 3nm off Terrigal
The prettiest of our local wrecks covered in yellow soft coral, well broken up since it sank in 1927. It is on sand but has a large boiler, lots of wreckage and attracts plenty of fish. Due to its depth, this dive is for the very experienced and well trained diver only, who is suitably equipped for this depth.
First Point 19m-27m
Named by Capt. Cook this series of ledges stepping down to 27m has lots of small swim throughs. In fact many are best described as squeeze throughs. Good marine life and lots of fish make this an easy beginners dive.
Kiama Wreck 46m – Toowoon Bay
A small, coastal collier which sank in 1952. It is sitting on rock but well flattened. There is a large boiler, the engine can be seen lying on its side and the site is usually well endowed with big schools of fish. This too is a deep dive and should only be attempted by experienced divers with suitable training and equipment.
These are just but a few of our many local dive sites and wrecks, a map and some other dive sites are on our Boat Dives page. We hope this will tantalise you into coming to Terrigal and diving with us.
* Ex HMAS Adelaide www.hmasadelaide.com
* Terrigal Dive www.terrigaldive.com.au/dive-the-hmas-adelaide
* Pro Dive Central Coast
www.prodivecentralcoast.com.au/divesites/diveexhmasadelaide.htm
2. SYDNEY WRECKS
Michael McFadyen is arguably the foremost expert on dive sites in Australia, if not the South Pacific. I cnnot recommend his expertise and knowledge above all others. As such, I draw everyone's attention to his website, firstly on Sydney Wrecks, but also on site in NSW and beyond. In his own words:
"I established this Web Site about scuba diving in Sydney, NSW, Australia and the South Pacific, as well as a few other places, in June 1996. Since then it has gone through a few different versions. This latest version is the fourth and was completed in July 2006.
The site has grown from a few pages to well over 800 separate pages. More than 650 dives are covered, mostly in detail and most with photographs and some with maps.
I am fairly confident that this is not only the largest diving related web site in the World, it also has more hits than any diving related web site in Australia.
This site is a non-commercial site and is unrelated to any dive organisation. It is purely here to provide divers with an information source to increase their enjoyment of scuba diving, shipwrecks and marine life in general. I hope that my experiences can help you when you are planning a dive trip, whether it is locally in Sydney, New South Wales, somewhere else in Australia or the Pacific Ocean region.
Any and all comments are welcome, as is any information to enhance the pages, especially more information about ships or shipwrecks or corrections to pages. I have also included some articles on non-diving related interests, especially four wheel driving and camping."
Sydney Wrecks: www.michaelmcfadyenscuba.info/viewpage.php?page_id=5
Dive Sites NSW: www.michaelmcfadyenscuba.info/viewpage.php?page_id=2
Another highly recommended resource is: NSW Wrecks www.nswwrecks.info
3. SYDNEY and SURROUNDS
Michael McFadyen:
Sydney Reef Dives: www.michaelmcfadyenscuba.info/viewpage.php?page_id=1
Michael's resource is the most comprehensive and perhaps will never be surpassed.
He covers the scores of sites in the following regions:
* Palm Beach
* Long Reef
* Manly / Nth Head
* Inside Sydney Harbour
* Eastern Beaches
* Inside Botany Bay
* Botany Bay to Cronulla and Port Hacking
* Royal National Park
MUDGEE DIVE & TRAVEL: THE PREMIER CHOICE FOR DISCERNING DIVERS AND TRAVELERS.
Site Design: Grant Willetts (MD&T)
Ph: 02 6372 1023; M: 0421 277 300; International: 61 2 6372 1023 ABN 98 124 932 154
All images, logos and trademarks are copyright of their respective owners. © Copyright 2005-2014. All Rights Reserved
Disclaimer: Data and information is provided for informational purposes only, and is not intended for any other commercial or non-commercial purposes. Neither us nor any of our data or content providers shall be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. By accessing our web site, a user agrees not to redistribute the information found therein. We provide customized links to select companies for your convenience only. We do not endorse or recommend the services of any company. The company you select is solely responsible for its services to you, the user. We shall not be liable for any damages or costs of any type arising out of or in any way connected with your use of our services.
| Site Map |