South River Dive Site by Kate
Hello Divers,
I wanted to share a few of the site available in Perth, Starting South River. The aim is to give a basic list of where to go and what to see for the beginner divers.
AMMO JETTY
Depth: 8m
Accessibility: Easy walk to the beach from the car park with a drinking fountain on the way
Facilities: Toilets, showers, plenty of car parks and free BBQ
Best time to dive: Anytime (except westerly winds blowing over 25 knots) Great night dive!
One of our favourite shore dive sites for good reason. Relatively protected from wind and a calm and easy dive of 8m max. Ammo jetty is a popular jetty for fishermen also and so it’s advised to keep underneath the jetty to save getting tangled in the line. Keep eyes out for seahorses, octopus, crabs, nudibranchs, moray eels, rays and Port Jackson sharks.
ROBBS JETTY
Depth: 5-8m
Accessibility: Make sure you park at the end of McTaggart street for safer parking. This site is quite a hike up a sand dune and is advised to do earlier in the day or on cooler days as it can get very hot and difficult
Facilities: Toilets, showers, plenty of car parks and free BBQ
Best time to dive: Morning, low wind and swell
Once the hard walk is done, it’s a short swim over to the statue where you begin your dive. Robbs Jetty is now underwater and it’s a fun dive to explore the pylons and structures to see what you can find. Look out for big rays, octopus, pufferfish, starfish, nudibranchs, batfish and schooling fish passing by.
KWINANA GRAIN TERMINAL
Depth: 5-8m
Accessibility: Easy walk to the beach from the car park
Facilities: No facilities
Best time to dive: Check no boats are in the terminal or visibility to drop to 1m
A short walk from the carpark and you’ll enjoy diving underneath the rather long jetty. Surface swim for 100m and drop down and slowly work your way back to the beach. Look out for crabs, squid, octopus, seahorses, nudibranchs and pufferfish.
ROCKINGHAM WRECK TRAIL
Depth: 18m
Accessibility: Easy walk to the beach from the car park. Go early on summer weekends so you can find a car park.
Facilities: Toilets, showers, plenty of car parks and free BBQ
Best time to dive: Anytime except for strong winds
The wreck trail is a beach drop off from Rockingham where you walk out to the mooring and drop down the line, following the lines to the wrecks. Check out the plane, boats and various structures with growth and see if you can spot a seahorse.
SUES GROIN
Depth: 5-7m
Accessibility: Easy walk to the beach from the car park
Facilities: No facilities
Best time to dive: Low easterly winds and swell low
The groin is a shallow easy dive and can be accessed by either the beach side or the rocky side. Beachside is normally more protected and much easier but check conditions on the day. Makes for a nice day and night dive just be aware of the fishermen and any line. Good spot to see cuttlefish, seahorses, nudibranchs, old wives, port jacksons and crabs on night dives.