Mooloolaba · Australia · Reef · Cave & cavern
MKVI
A mini cave that usually holds pelagics and wobbegongs
Area photo: Tanya Dedyukhina · CC BY 3.0
A ledge running east to west at 10 to 17 metres, which makes it hard to get lost on: you follow it out one way and come back along the same line. The feature is a mini cave that usually holds large pelagics, wobbegongs, slipper lobsters and painted crayfish, and the rest of the rock is anemones, clownfish and Christmas tree worms. Scuba World rates it Open Water.
Also known as MK6.
Where it is and how deep
26.6516° S, 153.1505° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Navigation is the easy part of this one. The ledge runs in an east-west direction and the dive simply follows it, so you swim out along the rock and turn back on the same line, using the 10 to 17 metre range to keep the profile square. Scuba World asks for Open Water certification and nothing beyond it, which makes this a common first dive of the morning off the boat.
The mini cave is what to look for. Scuba World recommends checking it because it usually holds large pelagics, along with wobbegongs, slipper lobsters and painted crayfish tucked under the rock. Around it the ledge carries heaps of anemones with clownfish in them and lots of small Christmas tree worms, which turns the rest of the dive into close-focus work along the face.
Marine life and season
- Wobbegongs
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Mooloolaba: Grey nurse sharks hold at Nurse Rock July–October, the months operators also rate clearest; summer is murkier and falls inside the November–April cyclone season.
Sources
- Mooloolaba Reef Diving — Scuba World
- MKVI — Scubago
More dive sites in Mooloolaba
Reef
Thousands of anemones, and shrimp 5 mm long
Wreck
A 133 m destroyer on sand at 28 m, dived outside only
Wall
A 50 m wall with an overhang you shoot from underneath
Reef
Grey nurse sharks on the rock from July to October
Sheltered ledge from 16 m up to 5 m, thick with nudibranchs
Reef
Eighty metres of coral-covered boulders on open sand
Reef
Reef shaped like a hull, in 23 to 32 m
Reef
A 12 m ledge where rays stop to be cleaned
Similar dives elsewhere
A blue groper named Greg often joins divers here
A protected colony of endangered grey nurse sharks
A rock arch with its flat top at 24 m and a swim-through below
Nature-reserve island with wobbegongs in the rocks and stingrays on the sand