Dive Conditions
How to Dive South Australia. The South Australian coastline has alot of easily accesible shore dives with a variety of entry points, some a little more challenging than others. This is a brief guide on how to assess a shore dive site in relation to the weather forecast and current conditions. Before you leave the house and/or when you arrive at the site, this will assist in making an informative decision as to whether or not the dive site is diveable. Remember that every scenario may be different and the weather is unpredictable, so please use common sense and also dive conservatively. Be a safe diver! Fleurieu Peninsula. There are many dive sites situated on the Fleurieu Peninsula ranging from Glenelg all the way down to Victor Harbour. As a general overview with a few exceptions the dive sites situated along this part of the coastline are very tempremental when the wind is blowing from the West, we call this an On-Shore wind. This is due to the coastline facing towards the west and therefore getting the full effect of unaffected winds blowing through. However, there are a few sites that are still diveable during a westerly wind direction. Pt Noarlunga Pt Noarlunga is potentially the best and/or worse site during a westerly wind. This is due to the artificial reef at the top of Port Noarlunga jetty. This particular dive site is very much dependant on the right tides. You can still comfortably dive this site during 15-20knot westerly winds assuming you time it for low tide. During low tide this site is protected by the reef and you get very little disturbance on the inside of the reef. However, there can be a very rapid change in surface conditions if you're still around as the tide starts to rise. As the tide rises the water breaks over the reef and creates a spa like affect below the jetty entry/exit points. Second Valley This dive site is a very popular dive site for training due to its easy access and relatively calm waters. Second Valley is only a short 100m walk from the car park to the entry/exit point on the jetty. This particular site has a North facing bay which makes it perfect for diving in mild 10-15knot south-westerly winds. This is due to a large headland which provides great protection against the wind and waves coming from that direction. If you happen to be down at this site during a northerly wind we recommend walking a bit of extra distance past the jetty and getting in at the south side of the headland. This side of Second Valley is much more popular for certified divers due to the abundance of marine life and rocky reef habitats. During days of calm water, light winds and small tides, around the 0-5knots ultimately coming from the south east, divers often explore an offshore reef, 300m out from the sandy beach named Lassiter's Reef. Victor Harbour, The Bluff The Bluff in Victor Harbour resides on the east coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula therefore is not as affected by westerly winds. This site, as dive sites everywhere, will be blown out by very strong westerlys but you can get away with alot more. Where your going to have problems at this dive site is when you get a strong easterly and large ocean swell. As this is a shore entry and requires a surface swim of around about 50m we recommend diving it during low wind speeds and on days with small tidal movement to avoid over-exertion. Yorke Peninsula. Unlike the Fleurieu Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula has a variety of coastlines including western, eastern and southern facing shores. The east facing coast has by far some of the most beautiful dive sites located in South Australia and is the best place to go when the Fleurieu Peninsula is blown out. However if you're living or staying in Adelaide then you're looking at a minimum 2 hour drive to reach alot of these sites, but let us tell you, they are a real treat. The eastern facing coastline of Yorke Peninsula is ideal when winds are coming from the west as this will cause off-shore winds keeping the surface conditions flat and mostly diveable. Yorke Peninsula is commonly dived during the cooler months generally between May and October as winds tend to come from the west during those times. Being a relatively narrow peninsula, if dive sites on the eastern side are blown out it will only take a 30min drive or so to get to the other side (western facing coastline) to check out the opposite sides dive sites. As mentioned earlier the Yorke Peninsula also has a southern coastline which can be quite difficult for shore dive access but a number of great sites still are accessible including Stenhouse Jetty and Chinaman's Hat, both in the Innes National Park region approximately 4 hours drive from Adelaide. Yorke Peninsula Sites (Eastern Coastline) Edithburgh Jetty Edithburgh Jetty is one of South Australias most popular sites and by far the most popular site on Yorke Peninsula. It is a very popular site during the winter months between June and September. The reason for this is due to its Easter facing coastline. During the Winter period the Fleurieu peninsula gets blown out alot due to heavy South Westerly winds. During these periods Edithburgh Jetty stays quite sheltered and as a result makes for an awesome winter diving destination. However, if there is a strong South Easterly wind you will need to watch out as the seas can get pretty rough. As far as diving this site goes, it couln't be easier. It is simply a jetty with some stairs about 20-30m in from the carpark. The most common way to dive this site is to try and follow the jetty as long as possible until you need to turn back. Off to left of the jetty as your facing East is a small drop off containing and abundance of seahorses if you have keen eyes. Wool Bay Although quite similar to Edithburgh Jetty in the type of conditions that you dive it and probably not quite as popular, Wool Bay is extremely renound for its Leafy Sea Dragons. It is quite a shallow dive with only about a 4m max depth making it a photographers dream due to extended bottom times and air supply. Ardrossan Kleins Point Port Giles Yorke Peninsula Sites (Western Coastline) Port Hughes Port Victoria Moonta Wallaroo |
