Mooloolaba · Australia · Reef · Sand slope
The Caves
A 12 m ledge where rays stop to be cleaned
Area photo: Tanya Dedyukhina · CC BY 3.0
A shallow reef with a small ledge, 1 to 3 metres high, dropping off to a sandy bottom, with a maximum depth of 12 metres. Sunreef runs it as a double dive and calls it suitable for divers of all levels. Large schools of surgeon fish pass over it, wobbegong sharks lie up under the rock, and rays stop on top of the ledge to be cleaned.
Where it is and how deep
26.6507° S, 153.1367° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
There is not much depth to lose here. The ledge stands only 1 to 3 metres above the sand and the site bottoms out at 12 metres, so a cylinder lasts and the dive becomes a long run along the rock with sand on one side and reef on the other. The obvious thing to do is look into the cut at the base of the ledge, which is where the wobbegong sharks lie up.
Watch the top of the ledge as much as the bottom of it. Sunreef describes rays gliding by or stopping for a clean by the cleaner fish up on the ledge, large schools of surgeon fish over the reef, and turtles and small tropical reef fish through it. Between the shallow profile and the simple layout, it is a straightforward second dive and a forgiving one for divers still sorting out their buoyancy.
Marine life and season
- Wobbegongs
- Stingrays
- Sea turtles
- Reef fish swarms
| 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
- Caves Double Dive — Sunreef Scuba
- The Caves — 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
A mini cave that usually holds pelagics and wobbegongs
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
Similar dives elsewhere
Beach entry to a jetty and a sunken barge at 12 m
Juvenile fish over sand and rock groups, from 5 m to about 20 m
Branching coral gardens in 5–12 m with three turtle species
Shore-entry reef with a spring nursery of young tiger sharks