Shiprock
Max Depth: 16m
Diver experience level: Open Water and up.
Great for: Nudie lovers, photographers, divers in general.
Night dive: Yes - definitely!
Description by: Jenny
Located at the bottom of Shiprock Road, Lilli Pilli. This dive is best done on the high slack for best viz chances. The current picks up as you round the corner into the main channel, so if you are diving mid tide, please be aware of this.
This dive site is one of NSW most brilliant dives, the wall with many varieties of soft coral, nudies, nudies, nudies, bream, old wives, stripeys, cuttlefish, octopi, leather jackets, globe fish, Western Red Rockcod, rays, wobbegongs, numbfish, moonlighters, eels, eeltailed catfish, flathead, hermit crab... the list goes on! We've even seen Lion fish there in the warmer months, and decorator crabs at night mating! Shiprock is one of 2 known sites for decorator crab in NSW, and I'm sure there's more there that I've missed.
It's a reasonably basic dive, follow the wall, keep it on your right, turn around at 100 bar and follow the wall back with it on your left.
You start at the bottom of Shiprock Rd, you'll see a path leading down to the water. It's steep, a little slippery when wet, but well worth the effort. There is a rope halfway down, I use it to balance myself on some of the steps cut into the rock - but it's your choice. Down the bottom of the hill you will find yourself behind a large rock that looks like a Ship. (Hence the site's name) Enter the water, and follow the rock to the end, turn right. You'll be facing the middle of the channel. Here's the best place to put your fins on. In front of you is a giant yellow marker buoy. Descend from here, heading towards the marker buoy, following the floor. Keep heading this direction and you'll find the wall. Get your bearings, and descend down the wall, turn right and follow it along. Easy!
There are many bommies around to explore, as well as the bubble cave. Don't breathe the air in the bubble cave! Who know's what's in there now!
Once you reach 100 bar, I'd suggest turning around. Keep the wall on your left on your way home. It won't take you long to get home, so keep an eye out for the place where the rocks tend to guide you back up once the wall has dropped away again for the 2nd time.
Keep your head down as this channel can be very busy with boat traffic. Come up to the platue and find the anchor chain for the buoy. Can't find it? Don't worry, as long as you do a safety stop in 5 m (about platue level - how convenient) and follow the floor up, you'll come up out of harm's way.
If you find a large flat rock with lots of oysters on it, you've come too far back - but only just.
We suggest doing this dive with someone who has done the site before to help you remember where to come back in. Our shore dives cost nothing but any gear you might need to hire and we rotate our roster to avoid doing the same site over and over again.