Shiprock
This is a very famous dive of Sydney South. The name comes from the shape of a rock. Ship Rock can only (except for Kamikazes) be dived for the 1 hour around the peak of high tide (Best is 30 min before, and 30 min after). This dive has usually got poor vis, and is crowded on weekends. Only ever attempt to dive at slack water as there is a strong tidal current. Also, NEVER surface unneccessarily - the boats travel right over the dive site. On the up-side, the marine life here is spectacular, and in summer you even see some small tropical species like lion-fish and heaps of nudibranchs. A great dive for the macro photographer! Also, at about 12m there is a small cave in the wall. You can surface under the ledge in the pocket of trapped air. If you are going to do this and remove your regulator to talk to someone else, then you should release a substantial amount of air from you occy as the air in the cave may be stale and or depleted due to the biota that exists in the cave. Ascend with slight positive bouncy so that constant finning to stay up does not stir up the bottom beneath you and ruin the dive for everyone else. On the return swim to the entry, exit point you should seek the shallower route along the top of the wall and look for the ornate crabs hiding in the walls intricate growth. These are best seen moving about on night dives. Enjoy! Shiprock dive site is located at the junction of Burraneer Bay and Port Hacking, on Sydney's southern outskirts, on the Cronulla Peninsula. Drive to Ship Rock road, and park at the end. Shiprock is also known as Ship Rock.
