Dive Details

Location

Date

Tuesday 11 December 2018

Time

11:52am - 1:37pm

Buddy

Mike Scotland, Steven Walsh

Seas

Slight

Visibility

3 to 10 metres

Duration

105 minutes

Surface interval

Maximum depth

13.5 m

Average depth

10.7 m

Water temperature

17°C

Dive Profile from Garmin Descent Mk1

Tides at Botany Bay AEDT

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

Low

5:01am

0.60m

High

11:34am

1.69m

Low

6:21pm

0.43m

Details

Our second dive of the day was at The Monument. Steve wanted to go back to the Valley of the Pygmies. We bumped into Mike at The Steps after our first dive and invited him to join us for the second.

We were around an hour behind plan and would be jumping in after high tide. We'd have some slack tide but then we'd likely hit a bit of current. I kept the anticlockwise plan as it was quicker to Valley of the Pygmies and there was other stuff to see on the way.

We got in at the protected area and waded out. When we were ready we dropped down the wall and headed towards the sand line. The visibility was 5 to 10 metres and the water temperature around 17°C. There was no current and very little surge.

I didn't go all the way to the sand line as I wanted to find the small orange red-fingered anglerfish that I'd found on 25 November and seen again on Saturday and Sunday. I looked for the right area and found it and the anglerfish. I took some photographs and pointed it out to Steve ad Mike.

I slowly made my way past Block Rock and the sponge covered rock and on to Pygmy Hollow. I spotted a female pygmy pipehorse next to the white honeycomb sponge. When Steve swam up I pointed it out to him. I then looked for more pygmies. I found a reddish male on the other end of the adjacent rock and a cryptic grey female behind the orange finger sponge. I pointed them out to Steve and Mike. While I was waiting for them I photographed the red amphipods in the purple sponges.

I swam slowly on. As I was passing the rock where "Honey", the female pot-bellied seahorse from a few years ago, had been, I noticed the mouth of an orange red-fingered anglerfish with an anglerfish attached to it. I pointed it out to Mike who was just on the other side of the rock and then to Steve when he caught up. I also spotted an umbrella snail nearby on the same rock.

We continued along the deep wall. I looked for the seahorses but found none of them. At the end of the wall we went up and over. I looked for pygmies on the rock over the top of the wall but found none.

We followed the reef to the slope below Seahorse Rock. I looked for "Nia", the brown White's seahorse. It has been a while since I last saw her and I couldn't find her again today.

We continued along the reef past Split Rock and on to where the grey red-fingered anglerfish had been. I looked for it but couldn't find it.

We swam on to the Valley of the Pygmies. As I swam up I found the reliable male in his usual spot. I took some photographs and pointed him out to Steve. I then went to the "castle" and looked for the king and queen. I found them both. The male is looking quite stunning now. I pointed them out to Steve and then went back to the slope to look for others. I eventually found 3 others, two males and a female.

Steve indicated he was down to 50 bar and was heading for the exit. I wanted to look for more pygmies so I stayed. I found another female just as Mike told me he was leaving. That made 5 on the slope and 2 in the castle.

I headed on my own along the NW-SE wall and then up and over to the corner. I hit a bit of current so it was a little tough going. I got to the large Carijoa covered rock and found the little yellow red-fingered anglerfish I'd found on Saturday. I looked around for the large orange red-fingered anglerfish but couldn't find it.

I then drifted east and south-east with the current along the point and back to little bay. I did my safety stop on the way. I overshot the bay and had to surface a couple of times before finding the path out. I then waded out.