North Bommie
18m
Only five minutes from the harbour, North Bommie consists of walls, canyons and large boulders, teeming with large schools of yellowtail and pomfrets. In the summer, Port Jackson sharks, bull rays and angel sharks can be found on the sand. Cuttlefish, wobbegongs and moray eels are also encountered. A rare black cod lives in a shallow cave in the rock wall.
NE Bommie
10-14m
Similar to north bommie and loaded with fish.
Golf Course Reef
25m
In front of the beachside golf course at Colliers Beach, Mollymook the shore drops quickly to 15 metres where a sparse kelp covered reef offers the usual temperate water fish species. From 19 metres the light fades and invertebrates take over with lots of colourful sea squirts, hydroids and sponges. The fish life is also diverse. The area is a good spot for photography from a boat.
Jones Beach, Mollymook
Jones beach offers a shallow shore dive or snorkel site. It is an easy entry into the water but a steep walk down the path from the car park. The sandy bottom offers patchy reef and boulders, and even a lost Admiralty pattern anchor. There are the usual temperate reef fish as well as cuttlefish. Getting back to the car is a real effort.
Mindbenders Reef
31m
GPS 35 22.39S 150 29.67
This reef is similar to Lighthouse Reef as it is basically an offshore extension to the southern side of that reef. The dive is on a series on sand filled gutters on the seaward side of the reef. It is packed with deep reef species including sea fans, sponges and sea whips. It is perhaps the best dive site in the area.der
Old shoreline
7-25m
There is a sunken ancient shoreline running from Lighthouse Reef to Bannister Point which was produced by changing sea levels in prehistory. It now appears as a sunken reef from 7-25 metres deep. Golf Course Reef and Sullivans Reef are just some of the sites along this feature. With a sounder a large selection of possible sites can be located, all with usually good visibility and fish life. Some areas come near the surface and care needs to be taken with navigation and anchoring.
The Hole and Amphitheatre
36m
GPS 35 23.71 150 28.50E
This area is an indentation in the reef noted for the small 2metre wide hole in the reef that leads into a small cave. The area nearby is covered with colourful invertebrates and teems with fish. It is also considered one of the best dives in the area.
Burrill Rocks
25m
GPS 35° 23′ 45.5″S 150° 28′ 13.3″E (AUS66)
This dive is on a series of rocks that rise up from a sandy bottom four kilometres From Ulladulla Harbour. It is close to the harbour, so tends to be popular with charter operators. A long reef runs parallel to the shore in the area about 200m from shore. There are drop offs along the reef but especially to the east of the exposed rocks. It also offers caves and a tunnel. In the deeper areas there are deep reef habitats full of sponges, sea whips, gorgonian sea fans and anemones. Fish life tends to be on the small side but there are schools of silver sweep, yellowtail and one-spot pullers. Around the caves there eastern rock blackfish, luderick and a few eastern blue devilfish. Typical diving is around the 15 to 22 metre mark. It is an excellent dive.
The Hole/Burrill Caves
20m-34m
GPS 35 23.73 150 28.23
Burrill Rocks are just the visible part of a long horseshoe shaped reef that runs out to sea to the east of the rocks. At the termination of the reef there is a series of tunnels and caves among a large field of boulders. The fish life is good and the tunnels provide some interesting topography. None of the tunnels are especially dangerous. The site is relatively exposed so good weather is required.
The Arch
27m
GPS 35 23.73 150.28.23
Large slabs of rock have collapsed creating a feature that is arch-like in appearance. It lies to the east of Burrill Rocks in 18-27m. The fish life is not great but the topography and deep reef invertebrate life make up for it. The site is relatively exposed. It lies along Burrill Reef about 750 m from the exposed rocks and not far from the Hole.
Brush Island/ Wreck of the Northern Firth
30m
This distant site is a 45minute boat ride from the harbour, so it’s rarely done by charter boats unless there is a large group able to make it worthwhile. It is a nature reserve so there are prospects of seeing seabirds and other wildlife on the trip out. The northern side of the island often provides some shelter and a long reef offers easy diving. In 10 m there is an old wreck scattered along the reef top at approximately GPS 35° 31′ 34.7″S 150° 24′ 55.6″E (WGS84). Four other vessels were lost near here, but this is probably the steamer Northern Firth. She was a steel steamer launched in 1922 in Scotland. In 1932 she left Melbourne for Sydney with a general cargo. She struck rocks just off Brush Island. There is a shallow reef to the south-east and east of the island but careless navigation was the cause. Today the pieces of rusted steel can be seen on the island and on the mainland shore. In the water off the north-eastern side of the island there is a huge boiler in 26M. The main elements of the machinery are lying around in the bare rocks in shallower water. The boiler attracts plenty of fish. This area offers a remote adventure experience for divers who enjoy poking around a scattered old wreck. There are also reports of deep pinnacles and extensive reef about 1 km off the SE corner of the island.
Southern Bannister Head
6-20m
This is one of the better shore dives in the area and is protected from northerly wind. It is also easier to access than some of the shoreline sites in the area. The bottom has good representation of temperate water reef fishes and some colourful invertebrates on the deeper sections of the reef.
Snapper Point, Merry Beach.
This is reached via a 500 metre walk from the Pretty Beach picnic area car park at the national park, or around from the caravan park. Its a long haul in full gear with steep and dangerous access points and you might prefer to get there by boat. The coast is east facing and quite exposed. It is also a popular angling spot. There is apparently a large cave under the rock shelf but this would require very calm weather to explore. The exact spot is not widely known.
Pretty Beach
6-10M
An easier alternative is a dive off the beach. The left side takes you around the point. The right hand side is a long dive with plenty to see and explore. At the right hand gets out to 10 metres at the point. This is dive site tis mostly about exploring for small fish and invertebrates. This is a great night dive.
Dolphin Point,
Dolphin Point is located about five kilometres south of Ulladulla. Surrounded by natural bushland. The rocky shoreline in the area offers good snorkelling and diving in calm weather.
North East Bommie
20-26M
35° 20′ 56″S 150° 29′ 28″E. (AUS66)
This site is a reef that runs north-south down a steep slope out onto the sand on the eastern side. The reef is teeming with fish, eastern blue devilfish, moray eels and nannygais. Along the edge of the sand, there are boulders noted for sea dragons. The rocks are bare in spots but also have areas rich in sponges, ascidians, gorgonia sea fans, lace bryzoans
The Gantry
12M
The Gantry is a shore dive centred on the remains of an old timber mill jetty located at Bawley Point. The wooden parts of the jetty have been removed and the concrete footing was used until recently as a fishing platform. It has become so decrepit that the Council has closed access, but it may be reinstated at some later date. The diving is centred on the nearby fringing reef and rubble on the bottom. In good weather it is an easy dive. It’s an easy dive offering smaller fish and invertebrates including sea horses and octopus. There are many juvenile species of fish. The Gantry can also be dived at night and is good for macro photography. It is popular with dive courses. Best dived on a southerly swell.