Dive Details

Location

Date

Friday 24 June 2016

Time

9:46am - 11:27am

Details

This was my first dive at The Leap since the big storm and it was going to be interesting. My first challenge was getting down the stairs due the the large rock blocking the path. The height of the rock was perfect for me to sit on and remove my tank. I then climbed over the rock, swung my tank around and sat on the other side to put my tank on again. It was quite easy.

It was calm enough to use the low platform. Using the low platform is going to be easier now due to part of the rock above being broken away by the storm. It makes a much better shelf for cameras, etc.

I jumped in and while on the surface I noticed almost all the kelp below the entry had been ripped out by the storm. I could only notice this because the visibility was at least 5 metres.

I descended and headed at around 30° towards the sand line. I was unsure whether the viz would stay good or deteriorate. It stayed good. I ended up at the amphitheatre - I guess I was swimming closer to 60° or perhaps I started farther south than I expected. The visibility here was between 5 and 10 metres and it was between 17 and 18°C.

I swam towards The Steps. Initially, there didn't seem to be much change to the landscape from the storm but as I approached Seahorse Rock I noticed more and more exposed rocks that had previously been under sand. I didn't see the fibreglass box side that has been there for years. Seahorse Rock itself looked unchanged. Just after Seahorse Rock I found a weedy seadragon.

After Seahorse Rock there were a lot more exposed rocks. The gap where I often see a weedy seadragon was a mess of exposed rocks and sand. I tried to find the tiny orange painted angler but couldn't see it. There's a good chance it was washed away. I had a look for the bent stick pipefish but also couldn't find it. Just before Southern Cross Rock I found a velvetfish. I've seen one in this location before and assume it is the same one. It survived the storm.

I swam through Seadragon Alley and there was a lot of damage there. More exposed rocks and in some cases it looked like a metre of sand had been removed. This got even worse after Seadragon Alley with large holes and undermined rocks. The area around Big Rock and where the pair of ornate ghostpipefish had been was a mess.

I located the rock where the basket star had been. Half its sponge had been ripped off and I couldn't find the basket star. This is disappointing as that basket star has been there for years.

At Diversity Rock there was a weedy seadragon near the sand line. I found the female pygmy pipehorse but could not find the male. I scoured the area for seahorses and found none.

I swam on to the other seahorses. Just before their rock I spotted a black painted angler on a sponge. This was a pleasant surprise and I was even able to get some decent photos of it. I looked all around the rock for Di and Mikhail but could not find them. I then looked around all the adjacent rocks and headed back behind Diversity Rock checking out all the sponge covered rocks for seahorses but found none.

I headed for the boulders and did my safety stop as I headed for the exit. I spotted a large false cleaner blenny along the way. I exited at The Steps which was very easy due to the calm conditions.

Seas

Slight

Visibility

5 to 10 metres

Duration

101 minutes

Maximum depth

21.6 m

Average depth

13.7 m

Water temperature

16.8°C

Dive Profile from Citizen Hyper Aqualand

Tides at Botany Bay AEST

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

Low

5:01am

0.32m

High

11:06am

1.32m

Low

4:36pm

0.58m

High

11:00pm

1.73m