Shark Point, Sydney: The Ultimate Shore Dive Adventure in Clovelly

Undoubtedly one of the best shore dives in the greater Sydney region and located in Clovelly’s backyard, this stellar underwater playground is a multi-faceted labyrinth of overhangs, swim-throughs, and coral-covered bommies, where absolutely everything is larger than life. Talia Greis checks out Shark Point, Sydney; one of the most-exciting shore dives in the area.

Schooling fish that blanket out the sun, grey nurse sharks, giant cuttlefish, seals, weedy seadragons, and, if you’re lucky enough, humpback whales. These are only but a handful of close encounters you can expect from taking a splash at Shark Point. But as they say, fortune favours the bold, and truer words could not be said about this challenging, exhilarating, adventurous site.

Entry and Exit: Tackling the Clovelly Challenge

The entry and exit is perhaps the sole drawback for many divers to attempt the site as a shore dive, as it can be physically challenging, adrenaline pumping, and incredibly treacherous if something unexpected arise.

Entry – The entry can be done through Clovelly pool; however, you won’t be able to reach the epicentre of the site with much time to spare before having to turn back. So most people decide to enter at the Gutter, which is at the edge of the rocks, and at the precipice of the open ocean. With twins, a 15kg camera, and a drysuit, the trek over rocks to the edge of the ocean is long and exhausting, and must be taken with care so as to avoid a twisted ankle, broken gear, or worse (all of which I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing).

Once you’ve braved the rocky red carpet, rock climbed down a few ledges, and made it to the gutter, you’ll want to take a breather and make your final gear checks. Air, mask, fins, dive computer, camera lens cap off, camera vacuum green – or you’ll have a daunting surface swim back to base.

Now comes the fun part! You’ll need to watch the swell roll in and negotiate a sweet spot to quickly put your fins on and giant stride into the gutter. I find its crucial to make this assessment from the park before taking the journey, so that you’re familiar with the periods, and the potential possibility of rogue waves rolling on in. But there’s always a lull between sets, and this is when you’ll want to giddy up and get in the water. My friend has always said that ‘Shark Point is a cruel mistress’ and will knock you on your backside if she’s not treated with caution and respect.

As soon as you land in the water, you’ll need to kick away from the entry with sincere urgency to avoid being sucked back into its wishy-washy gutter. Once this happens, it can be hard to break the cycle of surging in and out of its territory. Once you’ve kicked about 20 metres east (out into open ocean), you’re ready to begin your descent and long journey north. But the hard part isn’t necessarily over.

Exit – Prior to your dive, I find it’s incredibly important to take note exactly when you’ll be encountering the highs and lows of the tidal charts, or you can find yourself in a bit of a sticky situation. Ideally, you want to be jumping in at the middle of the incoming tide, so that when you reach the exit, there’s more than enough water flowing into Clovelly Pool. What most people don’t know is that there is a huge underwater wave breaker that separates the open ocean from Clovelly Pool. What this essentially means is that at low tide, and with a bit of swell, you may find yourself practically sucked back with the building of a wave, and smashed onto the shallow wave breaker with humungous force. And if you’re someone like me who would always put my camera’s safety first, you’re likely to be walking away with one too many bruises.

So you see, from start to finish, this site is not for the faint of heart, and should only be done with seasoned regulars who can assist you with the finer points of achieving the site without incident.

Ins and outs of the site

Shark Point offers up many different dive profiles, which means you can spend a substantial amount of time diving it, and never get bored.

Profile One: Big Rock and the Heart of Shark Point

This is perhaps the most popular profile to knock out, as you’re guaranteed all the great encounters with Shark Point’s local marine life. After jumping the gutter, the idea is to head north and maintain a depth of about 15m. Exploring the site’s ins and outs is essential to optimising your experience, with several hidden swim-throughs peppered along your journey. There’s also an impressive amount of overhangs and crevices buried into the sites walls, where you’ll have fun hunting for the smaller locals, including eastern blue devils, upside-down pipefish, catfish, nudibranchs, and cuttlefish.

However, the ultimate goal of this profile is to find the signature landmark known as Big Rock or Roundkabout Rock, and you’ll know you’re coming close (or found it) when the density of pomfrets, old wives, and yellowtail fish becomes overwhelmingly thickened. For some reason, marine activity really kicks up a notch or two in this general vicinity, so many divers decide to spend a great portion of their gas consumption circling Big Rock as the final destination.

With the perfect light and visibility, this is perhaps the best opportunity for underwater photographers to capture some very dramatic wide-angle scenes. Wobbygongs and huge smooth rays often cruise by the landmark, as well as giant cuttlefish and the odd cheeky seal, usually found hunting for fish in the shallower parts of the region.

During the whale migration (which usually runs from May to November), you’ll be on the lookout for humpback whales in the blue. Their songs can fill your dive with a haunting, sombre tune that vibrates through your entire body. Make sure you’re constantly looking out and up, as your chances of having one cruise by increase substantially. This is the only shore dive in Sydney, I’ve had my own lucky encounter, and would have had the gentle giant cruise straight over me, unnoticed, if my buddy hadn’t drawn my attention to it.

Despite having dived Shark Point over 100 times, I can still say with certainty that navigation is a reasonably challenging task to perfect, as relying on compass direction alone won’t get you into the pool every time

Profile Two: The Deeper Adventure Dive

This profile is an adventurous, exploratory dive that absolutely requires nitrox, as you’ll spend a great portion of the time at the 18m-24m mark. As you jump in, head due east before you hit the third terrace that hugs the sandline, and head north. This deeper profile doesn’t offer the same high density of marine life, but the encounters present a completely different experience.

Here, you’ll have the pleasure of surrounding yourself with hundreds of boulders that are peppered with soft coral tulips. This stunning underwater garden is the ideal setting for macro exploration, as the deeper regions are absolutely teaming with small critter life. I’ve had the privilege of finding rare nudibranch species, pygmy pipehorses, crocodilefish, weedy seadragons, and eels.

If you’re diving between late-August and mid-November, you’ll also find huge aggregations of Port Jackson sharks resting on the sandline. This time of year is the peak of their breeding season, and you’re likely to find hundreds gathered together in one condensed area. Sometimes I feel like being at this depth, in the middle of open ocean, staring off into the endless sandline can give you that sense that you’re in the path of something bigger, so keep peering off into the distance.

Profile Three: The Express Lane Dive

I call this profile the ‘the express lane’, as it’s for those of you who are after a quick and easy splash. If you only have a 12-litre tank handy, or don’t have more than an hour to spare, you can simply jump into the gutter and head south. This essentially cuts out the more-excitable regions of the site, but gives you a little taste of paradise in the latter half of the full profile. You’ll still have incredible opportunities to enjoy the shallow kelp gardens and dramatic underwater landscapes, with the added bonus of natural light illuminating the path back into the pool.

This profile averages out at approximately 8m-10m, and you’re bound to have memorable encounters with smooth rays, eagle rays, schooling fish, blue grouper, and much much more.

Essential Gear and Safety Tips

Safety checks – As mentioned, Shark Point is a taxing experience, and once you jump in there’s really no turning back (without a long surface swim back through the pool. The entry and exit are approximately half a kilometre apart, so if something is forgotten or goes wrong, you’re in serious trouble. Before you stride into the gutter, be sure to do a final buddy check, make sure all underwater photography gear has been prepped and checked the night before, and everyone is feeling good and healthy before proceeding to the edge.

First and foremost, I’d strongly advise against diving with anything less than a 15-litre tank. You’re putting in the hard yards to make this dive possible, so you want to maximise your experience for all the effort. I know the thought of trekking with twin tanks over the rocks is practically heartbreaking, but I truly believe it’s the only way to dive Shark Point. This way you could either maximise your time doing one of the profiles, or even fit two into a single dive.

Nitrox is a key component for this particular site, especially when exploring the deeper profiles, which sit at around 20m-26m.

And whatever you do, ensure you’ve taken your dive computer (fully charged) and SMB with you. Surfacing in open ocean with a substantial amount of boat traffic can be incredibly dangerous without one.

Conditions and Best Time to Dive

We are all too familiar with botched swell reports and unpredictable conditions, so when you get to the site, be sure to walk to the edge of the top cliffs and inspect the entry for a solid five to ten minutes. Look for rogue waves, and assess the swell period. Also be sure to triple check the exit, and be mindful of tidal times to avoid unexpected shifts in future conditions.

Sydney is also prone to the occasional ground swell, so be mindful of the fact that rocks shift every so often, which can make the walk to the entry impossible at times. Never dive without a buddy, as you may find them an invaluable tool even before you’ve taken a splash.

And seeing as we are on the topic of buddies, if you’re not familiar with the site, be sure you’re diving with someone who is. Despite having dived Shark Point over 100 times, I can still say with certainty that navigation is a reasonably challenging task to perfect, as relying on compass direction alone won’t get you into the pool every time. Every time you dive here, take note of landmarks that stand out, and check your compass at these landmarks for future reference.

We all know the feeling of getting up at the crack of dawn, and venturing down to your chosen dive site, only to realise it’s far too rough to even attempt. It’s a heartbreaking, sobering snap back into reality that will leave you in tears. But it’s an important skill to have which could inevitably save your life. Shark Point should not be dived with a swell report greater than 1.2 metres (1.5 metres if you’re experienced and confident of your abilities to execute a save entry). And ideally you want the swell direction coming from the S, SE, with a N, NE wind direction to counteract the rolling swell. If you’ve arrived to a N, NE swell, you may want proceed with caution.

Like all dive sites and marine life encounters in Sydney, the best time to dive Shark Point would have to be in winter, as the conditions and visibility tend to improve around this time of year. It’s the type of site you’ll want to take in from a wider perspective; with the underwater topography, large schooling fish, and marine rock stars making an appearance on a regular basis. Perhaps the best thing about diving in winter is the higher chance of encounters with humpback whales, and giant cuttlefish. So if you can brace the colder climates, check in the blue.

Final Thoughts: Embrace the Adventure

Shark Point as a site is larger than life, and the ultimate dive destination for adventure-seeking locals to spice things up. You’ll always find different ways to explore the site, and discover new and exciting areas in the process. Once upon a time, my buddies and I decided to dive profile one, and keep going till we hit Bronte Beach, just to see what was beyond the boulders!

The crucial thing to remember, no matter how you dive it, is safety. The ocean’s power can really be felt at the edge of the cliffs, so make sure you know how to tackle the entry and exit, and be sure you’re either familiar with the site yourself, or diving with someone who is. Embrace the adventure, channel the inner explorer within, and always remember to keep looking up!

Frequently Asked Questions