Dive Details

Location

Date

28 February, 2014

Time

10:52am - 11:17am

Details

When we arrived at Swansea Bridge the tide was still coming in and the current was huge. We waited until it slackened, got ready and got in. We were probably 10-20 minutes too late in getting in.

We jumped in near the steps and descended down the wall. We headed towards the bridge. This was my first dive here and I was impressed by the amount of life. I would not have expected so much life from looking at the surface. It was quite similar to Shiprock.

We made it about as far as the bridge before the outgoing tide meant that the current was tough to fight. It was also at this point that I could not find Sheree. She'd been just behind me with Kevin and now she was gone. I looked around for her and than surfaced in case she'd given up due to the current. She wasn't on the surface either. I went back down and had no trouble finding Kevin again, as well as Seb and Karolyn. I had to assume that Sheree was still around the pylons but the current was now so strong I couldn't get there. Kevin and I tried to stay low and out of the current until we could no longer stay. We swam back to the entry point and waited for Sheree who showed up 3 minutes later. She'd been around the pylons of the bridge.

Next time we do this dive we'll get in as soon as the incoming tide starts to slow.

Buddy

Sheree Papuni, Kevin Bacon

Seas

Slight

Visibility

5 metres

Duration

25 minutes

Maximum depth

11.1 m

Average depth

7.6 m

Water temperature

22.0°C

Dive Profile from Citizen Hyper Aqualand

Tides at Newcastle AEDT

Note that tides at dive site may vary from above location.

Low

1:49am

0.38m

High

8:17am

1.95m

Low

2:46pm

0.19m

High

8:55pm

1.64m

Camera gear

Camera

Nikon D7000

Lens

Nikon AF Micro-Nikkor 60mm f/2.8D

Housing

Ikelite 6801.70

Lens port

Ikelite Flat Port 5502.41

Strobe

2 x Ikelite SubStrobe DS161

Photographs

Depth information, where present, indicates the depth of the camera when the photograph was taken and can be used to approximate the depth of the subject.

Common Sydney octopus, Octopus tetricus. 4.5 m.
 

Blotched hawkfish, Cirrhitichthys aprinus. 10.4 m.
 

Juvenile fan-bellied leatherjacket, Monacanthus chinensis. 9.8 m.
 

Decorator crab, Hyastenus elatus. 8.2 m.
 

Juvenile truncate coralfish, Chelmonops truncatus. 8.8 m.