Dive Details

Location

Date

Sunday 18 November 2018

Time

11:56am - 1:29pm

Buddy

Greg Hill, Maddie Hill

Seas

Surge

Visibility

3 to 5 metres

Duration

92 minutes

Surface interval

Maximum depth

12.6 m

Average depth

9.8 m

Water temperature

19°C

Dive Profile from Garmin Descent Mk1

Tides at Botany Bay AEDT

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

High

5:36am

1.32m

Low

11:25am

0.70m

High

5:33pm

1.42m

Details

Greg and his daughter Maddie joined me for my second dive. We did The Monument again but as the tide had turned we'd do it counter-clockwise. The seas had calmed a bit from the end of the last dive so we'd be able to get in at the protected area.

The tide was still quite low as it was only 30 minutes since low tide so the protected area was quite shallow. We waded out to the drop off and when ready we descended. We must have drifted out and along as we dropped right on the sand line at Block Rock. The visibility was around 5 metres and there was still some surge. The water temperature was around 19°C. There was no noticeable current.

We swam straight to Pygmy Hollow. I spotted the original male pygmy in the hollow next to the white honeycomb sponge. As I was moving around to shoot him from the other side of the sponge, I noticed another male on the adjacent rock. I then noticed a female which may be the same female I saw when I first found the pink female. I then spotted another male, the one I saw last Sunday, and another female, who I also saw last Sunday. Finally, I spotted the original female. That makes 3 pairs of pygmies at this location.

We swam along the wall past the dwarf lionfish. I looked for the pot-bellied seahorses but found none. I'll keep looking each time I dive here.

We headed up over the wall. I spotted the small Nembrotha purpureolineata nudibranch on the slope and pointed it out to Greg and Maddie. I found the male pygmy pipehorse on the rock. He was on top of the rock.

We continued along the reef to the slope below Seahorse Rock. I looked for "NIa", the brown White's seahorse. She'd been there on Thursday but I hadn't found her on the previous dive and I couldn't find her today.

We followed the reef all the way to the grey red-fingered anglerfish. I'd found where it had moved to on the previous dive but it had moved again since then. It may be difficult to find again on my next dive.

We swam down to the Valley of the Pygmies. I'd found 6 pygmies on the previous dive and I was hoping to find the two that were missing from Thursday. I found the reliable male on the slope and while I was looking for his partner I found a tube-building amphipod, Kapalana wadei. I couldn't find any others on the slope so I checked the rock and found both the male and the female. I went back to the slope again and after a bit of searching I found the other male. I could not find the small female I'd found on the first dive, the partner of the reliable male, the pink female I'd found on Thursday, nor the juvenile from Thursday. Maddie spotted a small white snapping shrimp.

We swam along the NW-SE Wall and then up over it and across to the end of the East-West Wall. I checked on the large Carijoa rock for the large orange red-fingered anglerfish and found it on the western end of the rock. I hadn't had time to look for it on the last 3 dives so I was pleased to find it.

I had a quick look on the shelf for the pygmy pipehorses but could not see any before we headed west along the foot of the East-West Wall. I kept an eye out for the great seahorse (or any other seahorses) as we swam. I had expected there to be a bit of current to ride but if anything it felt like we were swimming into current.

We got to the location of "Naomi", the yellowish White's seahorse. I went straight to the orange finger sponge she'd been in on the previous dive but she was not there. I then spotted her in the next sponge. I pointed her out to Greg and Maddie. I checked on their air and they each had 70 bar which was plenty to see the last two pygmies and then swim to the beach.

I continued on to the last two pygmies a little farther along the foot of the wall. I took some photographs and turned around and couldn't see Greg or Maddie. I swam back to the seahorse in case they were still there but they weren't. I then looked up and they were at the top of the wall.

I swam up to Greg and Maddie and we swam along the top of the wall and then headed south-west and finally south towards the beach. We did our safety stop as we went and got out in front of the flagpoles.