Sund Rock

No visibility.

No vis.

I have dove this site every month of the year over several years. Late winter-early spring is often best--recently, viz has been about 25 to 40' horizontally, and I've seen a surface buoy clearly from 65' down. Also, late fall, after the algae bloom has subsided and before winter storms have flushed the creeks into the Canal, can also be great diving. This site has everything: LOTS of octos, wolfies, and lings as well as many kinds of rockfish, perch, shrimp, greenling, and even some resident red brotulas. There are two massive and several smaller walls, a pretty doggone good wreck, a large-cabin porta potty in the parking lot, entry from the parking lot is a 50 foot flat walk or less (there is also a prepared trail with steps to a pebble beach . . . And, not to forget, an outstanding dive shop 5 minutes away that can repair broken equipment. OK . . . Is the viz guaranteed good? No, when the rivers are flooding and flowing sediments into the Canal, viz can go from feet to inches, and during summer algae blooms viz is frequently like much of Puget Sound. But then again . . . Man, it is simply superb when the conditions are good, and just plain good most of the rest of the time. Lastly, although there can be 15 foot tide changes, there are next to NO currents this far south in the Canal.

Sund rock is the best dive in Puget sound. It is on hood canal and there is little to no current so you do not have to worry about tide charts. The $15 fee is for the day and I've done 4 dives in a day there so it is not too much money. From the boat ramp-like entry point you can either go left or right. To the left you will find the North wall. It has lots of fish on the top of the wall 15'-25' and nice drop down to 100' or so to some boulders where you can find an octo or wolfeel. Another dive to the right is a boat. If you look north from the beach you will see Hoodsport and Dive, between there and you is a buoy that marks the boat. You can either do a surface swim or just go under and head strait north to find it. It is an old fishing vessel and will have lots of fish on and around it. Left from the beach is the south wall. It is by far the best dive in Washington for Wolfeels and Octo's. Swim at about 25' along the shore from the entry and you will come to a big smooth rock. This is where the fun begins. You will find lots of boulders in the 20' to 50' range and they will be home to many wolf Eels and Octo's. Look for a pile of broken crab shells next to a hole under a rock and you have most likely found a den. Bring your flashlight so you can find these mostly nocturnal critters at home in bed. On any given dive I can always find 4 or 5 Wolfies and at least 1 or 2 Octo's. There are lots of fish and a very large Ling Cod along with lots of plant life. The daily fee is well worth it and tell Mikey hi for me.

I've done 5 dives at Sund Rock, all of them via the $15 private access available through the local dive shop. Access can't be any easier if you pay the fee, but I guess it's a bit of a swim if you do the economy version. The aquatic life is extremely abundant, likely due to the fact that it's a marine reserve so remember, no hunting or collecting. I prefer the south wall, but the north is an excellent "deep" dive. I've been down to about 80 ft there. Visibility tends to be rather good, but watch out for overwhelming crowds on the weekends. This is my favorite dive in the NW!

Easy to drain 3 tanks here.... from Olympia, I-5 Exit 104, onto Hwy-101-North, go 5.8 miles & turn right at Hwy-101/Hwy-8 to Shelton, go through Hoodsport ~28 miles, cross Finch Creek Bridge north of town, then 2 miles, just approaching a rise in a left turn there's small turnout, trail about center of turnout, down 155 steps to the high water, PRIVATE LAND here so enter between white boundary markers at trail's end, swim about 55 degrees for about 10 minutes, drop 15 to 80 feet... Typical: current 0-1.3 knots, vis. 20 ft, weekend very busy, octopus, wolf eels, crabs, fish... Hood Sport/Dive is about 4/10 mile north with air, Nitrox, & showers, and a key to enter the Sund Rock site directly from a private parking area for ~$15-pp. The 200-300 ft long rocky wall is nice... also there's a north wall a couple hundred feet or so north of this wall that's easily accessed from the paid parking area... and an anchor, and a small boat... and if you like sea whips, plumose anemones, nudibranchs, moon snails, and crabs, although sparse, try south of Sund Rock 20-50 ft.