The top 18 dive and snorkel sites in South Australia, ranked by diver reviews, with maps and photos. Read the South Australia guide
One of the most amazing dive sites in South Australia! The jetty teams with marine life in the daytime, but simply over spills at night! A must for any diver that is on the Yorke Peninsula.
Leather Jacket Alley is similar to Broken Bottom. Apparently there are naturally formed gutters, but visually is similar to other SA sites. There are a number of different types of fish that come here however, including the Leather Jacket the site is named for.
Visibly is good, but be aware that the lack of distinctive features make it easy to get lost. A common training dive. Broken bottom is part of the original Adelaide shore line.
This site is generally known just as "The Dredge". It's the sister ship to "The Barge" which is sunk nearby and is an easy swim (star droppers show the way). This is probably one of the best wrecks available to OW divers in SA. The deck is about 14m, and the sea floor is 20m making is a easy dive. There is typically a few schools of fish swimming over the wreck, plus crabs, cuttlefish and other creatures hiding under the hull. The Dredge is also known as The South Australian 'The Dredge'.
The Barge is the sister sip to the Dredge, and used to carry sand before being sunk as a dive wreck. The deck is only 12m or so, and the bottom is about 18m. Typically there will be schools of fish, crabs, sea cucumbers. Wreck penetration is not recommended as there is lots of piping.
Great opportunity to see Leafy Sea Dragons. Fantasic photography. Schools of fish towards the end of the jetty. Like an underwater forrest. Able to drive a car close to the jetty. entry via steps at the end of new jetty, then a short swim across to the old.
Been many years since I had dived here, but you may still need a permit to snorkel and it probably still is rated as a Cave Dive and will require a Cave certification to dive this site.
Ewans Ponds is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Australia, SA, Mount Gambier which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.
Port Mac Donald Pier is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Australia, SA, Mount Gambier which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.
Apart from the difficult entrance, the marine life is quite plentiful. The wall that curves around the point has plenty of crabs and sometimes crayfish. A good place for spotting Leafy and Weedy Seadragons! Difficult entry via rocks down to the water.
A very easy recreational dive with very easy access and a very diverse amount of marine life in the summer. Plenty of sea grasses, with Lasseter's Reef nearby. Excellent opportunities for spotting the very elusive Leafy & Weedy Seadragons! Easy access to either the shore or the jetty steps from the very close car park.
Not is big as Rapid Bay jetty but still a great little pier dive. Plenty of colourful sponges, zebra fish, crabs, butterfish and also has the famous Leafy Seadragons which are a must see in SA. If heading to KI well worth throwing in a set of dive gear and a camera. Easy pier/shore dive. Free car parking is right beside the pier. You can either go in via the shore as it drops away quite quickly or from the pier. Very easy access due to parking being only a few metres from the water so no long walks with gear on your back.
Limestone cave containing 4+ km of passageways; water is 15°C. Adjacent to Fossil Cave. Contact Cave Divers Association of Australia (CDAA) for access details.
Pine Cave is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Australia, SA, Mount Gambier which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.
Fossils Cave is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Australia, SA, Mount Gambier which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.
Ex-HMAS Hobart (D39) was a Perth class guided missile destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy. It was decommissioned in May 2000 and sunk as a dive wreck on 5 November 2002. She now sits level on the sand at 30m with the main deck at approximately 15m. Before being sunk the ship was extensively prepared as a dive site with many hole cut into the side allowing light to enter and providing views into the wreck from the outside. ex-HMAS Hobart is a boat dive, boat normally leave from Wirrina Cove ramp which is 4.2 miles from the wreck. Activities in the vicinity of the ex-HMAS Hobart wreck are legislated under the Historic Shipwrecks Act 1981. A protected Zone has been established and a permit is required to enter within 550m of the site. More information can be found at www.exhmashobart.com.au
Visibility is quite variable, so pick your tide and weather conditions for the best experience. You'll be greeted by drummer, old wives and sweep when you first drop in, they are residents around the last pilons on the jetty. Check the ocean floor for wobbegongs and rays, look for brilliant seastars and ascidians on the reef walls and above all, have fun! This suburban dive site presents easy parking, and a walk of a few hundred metres out along the jetty. From there, you climb down a staircase, and gently drop into the sea. The jetty has a 'no take' zone at the end of it, so you don't have to worry about getting tangled in recreational fishermen's lines. The jetty abutts the reef, which runs perpendicular to it, and can be explored in either direction. This site is in the Onkaparinga Estuary Aquatic Reserve.
During the months of April through to September (peaking in June and July) Giant Australian Cuttlefish gather here to mate in hundreds of thousands. There can be hundreds visible at any time, grouped along the shore from the Santos fenceline to Black Point a couple of kilometres west. Dolphins can also be seen in the area feeding on the cuttlefish, and occasional Southern Right and Humpback Whale sightings are a treat. This is the world's largest known breeding aggregation of cuttlefish, and it is a unique spectacle to behold. After an alarming drop in population in 2011, the cuttlefish habitat is now threated by the proposal of a 280 megalitre-per-day desalination plant, port expansion and other industrial developments. Dive community solidarity is needed to help save the Giant Australian Cuttlefish and their home. You can find out more at http://cuttlefishcountry.com They don't get much easier han this! It's a very short walk from a small parking lot down a non-slip boardwalk and across 10-20 metres of large, flat rocks into the water. The entry point is at the fenceline of Santos' Port Bonython gas fractionation plant, on the Western side. The rocks at the water's edge can be slippery. Note: as of April 2012, access to this dive site is threatened by the proposed expansion of Port Bonython, and construction of a new iron ore export jetty. Opportunity for public comment exists. You can find out more at cuttlefishcountry.com Port Bonython Fenceline is also known as Whyalla Cuttlefish.
Zentacle lists 7 dive shops in South Australia. The top-rated are Underwater Sports (5.0 from 35 reviews) and The Dive Shack - Port Noarlunga (4.8 from 98 reviews).
