After a couple of rather cool and wet days in Hobart, we journeyed 80km east to dive the spectacular Tasman Peninsula with the crew from Eaglehawk Dive Centre.
The dive centre also has onsite bunkhouse accommodation, which is very comfortable, with two rooms of seven beds and upstairs is the more private ‘Honeymoon Suite’ with a double bed. There is also extra accommodation available above the dive shop.
The afternoon we arrived at Eaglehawk Neck the weather had really turned it on, sunny and warm, plus only light wind. Karen Gowlett-Holmes, the dive centre manager, informed us that dive conditions were perfect – 14C water temperature and 15m visibility. We were lucky the water temperature hadn’t risen to its summer high of 16C, as this induces algae blooms, which can reduce the visibility.
We got comfortable in the bunkhouse and got our diving and camera gear ready for diving the next day. That night the calm conditions were replaced by a howling north westerly wind, blowing 30 knots and gusting at 60 knots!
In the morning the wind was still screaming and we thought the diving was bound to be cancelled, however Karen informed us that strong north westerly winds were not a problem, as it is still calm under the cliffs. Loading up the dive gear, Karen took us down in the troop carrier to meet the dive boat.
We met Mick at the boat and after loading the dive gear we headed across the choppy waters of Pirate Bay. Mick was taking us north to dive off the Forestier Peninsula and we were soon in calm waters on the northern side of Pirates Bay and anchored at a site called Nobbies Wall.
Jumping in the water was quite chilly at 14C for a couple of Queensland divers, even in 7mm suits. We descended onto the kelp below and for the next forty minutes explored a jumble of kelp covered boulders in 10 to 25m of water. The fish life was not prolific, but we did see long-snouted boarfish, banded morwong, butterfly perch and several species of wrasse and leatherjackets. In the 12m visibility we found several crayfish hiding under ledges and many other invertebrate species on the rocky walls. Several Shaw’s cowfish were fun to photograph as they tried to hide in the kelp.
At the end of the dive a draughtboard shark suddenly swam into view and lay down in the kelp beside us. For the next few minutes the metre long shark was the perfect model, allowing dozens of photos to be taken from every angle.
Returning to the dive shop, most dives are run as single dives to allow divers time to water up, we had a quick lunch and then headed north again. By now the wind had started to drop and swing around to the west.
Gary was running the boat for this dive and took us up to Deep Glen Bay to dive Smugglers Cave. The cave is located behind the impressive Pyramid Rock, with Gary able to run the boat into the small channel that runs around the rock. We descended into the kelp lined channel at 8m and then headed towards the cave. Entering Smugglers Cave the kelp was quickly replaced by invertebrate species – sponges, ascidians, bryozoans and zooanthids. The visibility in the cave was excellent, over 20m, allowing us to fully appreciate this large cavern.
Though not huge, the cave is around 8m wide and cuts a fair distance into the cliff face. Boulders dot the cave floor and hiding under them were crayfish and a number of abalone. For the rest of the dive we explored parts of Deep Glen Bay, seeing more reef fish and a couple of weedy sea dragons.
The next day the wind picked up again, but being from the west allowed us to head south to Fortescue Bay to explore the giant kelp forest. Mick informed us that the kelp forest in Fortescue Bay is the only one left on the east coast of Tasmania, the rest having died off due to the warmer currents that now flow down the east coast, dominating the cooler southern currents that used to prevail.
Entering this swaying jungle was a magical experience. The giant kelp rises from the rocky bottom in 15m and covers much of the surface. Swimming between the kelp was easy and also eerie, seeing brown towers rising to surface all around us.
In some of the denser patches we disappeared into the dark foliage. The fish life was quite good in the forest, we encountered bastard trumpeters, leatherjackets, banded morwong, long-snouted boarfish, globefish, wrasse, Shaw’s cowfish, marblefish and Johnston’s weedfish. Crayfish, sea stars, crabs and abalone were also abundant amongst the rocks and we found two draughtboard sharks.
As we had travelled a fair distance down the coast we were doing a double dive on this trip. For the second dive Mick took us over to Bivouac Point for an exploratory dive. At this site we investigated kelp covered boulders sloping from 6 to 30m. We spotted numerous long-snouted boarfish, a number of stingarees and quite good numbers of reef fish. Some pretty overhangs were a highlight, a good place to see a range of invertebrate species, including sea stars, crayfish, feather stars and yellow zooanthids. Some of the divers were even lucky enough to encounter several weedy sea dragons.
After the days diving, and with plenty of summer daylight, we had a chance to explore the other attractions on the Tasman Peninsula – the Tessellated Pavement, Tasman Blowhole, Tasman Arch, Devils Kitchen and the Tasmanian Devil Park. The convict prison ruins at Port Arthur are also only 19km away.
Our final day of diving brought the best conditions, light winds and calm seas, perfect conditions to dive the Tasman Peninsula’s most famous dive site, Cathedral Cave. The cave is one of many in Waterfall Bay, a spectacular bay surrounded by towering cliffs over 250m high. Mick tied the boat up to the cliff face and then gave us a full briefing on the site and safety procedures. Cathedral Cave is the largest sea cave in Australia and has many dark passages to explore.
We jumped in to find the visibility over 20m, allowing us to see the boulder littered bottom 25m below. Descending, we headed towards a huge dark recess in the rock wall. The entry to the cave system is immense, a massive tunnel disappearing into the wall.
We entered and looking around could see a handful of reef fish and a small school of bastard trumpeters mingling around the rocky bottom. The walls of the cave are coloured by sponges, ascidians and masses of yellow zooanthids. Our torches also revealed sea cucumbers, sea stars, feather stars, crabs, shrimps, molluscs and crayfish.
We followed the main passage into the cave, which is large enough to drive a truck through. Fish life inside the cave was sparse, but a school of bullseyes obscured one dark ope
ning.
There were many dark side passages, which Mick had warned us about, so we stayed
in the main tunnel. There were also several side entrances
opening to the outside, allowing plenty of light in. We headed out of the cave
through one of these side entrances and found several long-snouted boarfish and
a weedy sea dragon.For our final dive we explored another of the caves in Little Waterfall Bay, called Head Bangers. Here we dived along rocky walls dropping to 20m that were cut by many ledges.