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Scuba diving & snorkelling

While Victoria may not be the first place that comes to mind when thinking about scuba diving in Australia, there are, in fact, many great dive sites in the state. There are over 20 marine parks and sanctuaries along Victoria's coastline, allowing marine life to thrive undisturbed and give divers and snorkellers the chance to see the underwater world in its natural state. Some of the plants and animals found in these protected areas are found nowhere else in the world. From soft corals to sponges, seals to seahorses, sharks to shipwrecks, Victoria has it all.

Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay

In the Melbourne area, most dive sites are at the southern end of Port Phillip Bay or just outside the heads, and near the entrance to Western Port Bay. Visibility is generally in the 10 to 20 metre range during summer, reducing to around half this in winter.

Melbourne is an ideal area for wreck diving, with over 60 shipwrecks from the 19th century. While many of these are too deep for all but very experienced divers, there are also a number that are easily accessible, with one of the most popular being the Eliza Ramsden. Also popular are four World War One J-class submarines that were scuttled in the 1920s. A little further afield is the ex-HMAS Canberra, which was scuttled off Ocean Grove in late 2009 and sits at a depth of 28 metres.

There are many other dives on offer around Port Phillip and Western Port Bays. Popes Eye, a ring of rocks that was originally built as a fort is, today, home to seals and numerous species of birds and fish. Lonsdale Wall and Nepean Wall, near Port Phillip Heads, offer spectacular diving with ledges, caves, swim-throughs and numerous species of fish and other marine life. Seal Rocks, off the western tip of Phillip Island, provides the opportunity to watch seals in their natural habitat.

For shore dives or snorkelling, the piers at Portsea, Rye and Flinders are ideal and have a wide variety of sea life. The Rye pier has an underwater trail that provides a marine life tour. The Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary, off the coast of Beaumaris, is another good place for snorkelling, with a variety of marine life on its sandstone platforms.

	Bayplay	Providing a wide range of adventure activities on the Mornington Peninsula including kayaking, scuba diving, snorkelling, dolphin swims, surfing and horse riding
	Dive Victoria	Experience year-round diving around Victoria's Port Phillip Heads and explore shipwrecks including the scuttled HMAS Canberra, kelp forests and scallop beds. Snorkelling adventures amongst seals and other marine life also available. Departures from either Portsea or Queenscliff.
	Ocean Divers	Departing from Portsea, dives in Port Phillip Bay and outside the bay's heads are offered including exploration of submarines and other wrecks along the coastline
	Oz Dive Charters	Conducting dives at many sites of interest around Port Phillip Heads including the scuttled HMAS Canberra, there's sure to be a dive that suits your interests and abilities. Charters operate from Portsea, Rosebud, Rye, Sorrento and Queenscliff.
	Shark Dives at Melbourne Aquarium	For a dive where you are guaranteed to meet sharks, the Melbourne Aquarium offers the opportunity to dive in its 2.2 million litre oceanarium. The tank is home to grey nurse, sandbar whaler and seven gill sharks, stingrays and hundreds of other fish. Even non-divers can take the plunge as a brief dive course is available.
	The Reel Thing	Join us on a dive charter from Flinders and explore the spectacular underwater scenery of the area with its magnificent reefs, ledges, marine creatures and plant life. Or choose a fishing charter on Port Phillip Bay, departing from Patterson Lakes, with equipment, lunch and expert tuition provided.

Gippsland

While Melbourne provides some spectacular dive sites, the best diving in Victoria is, arguably, around Wilsons Promontory. With clearer water than the Melbourne area, average visibility at the Prom is around 15 to 25 metres and, on a really good day, can be 40 or more metres. There are myriad species of marine life to see, including sponges, sea mosses, starfish, ascidians, kelp and numerous varieties of fish in amongst features such as caves, swim-throughs, rock pinnacles and walls. There are both shore and boat dives available, with several sites, such as Refuge Cove, Norman Bay, and Little Oberon Bay also good for snorkelling. There is a seal colony at Kanowna Island where you can dive or snorkel with these playful animals.

Another interesting diving area in the east of the state is the Bunurong Marine National Park, between Cape Paterson and Inverloch. This area has a gently sloping, rocky sea floor, which is uncommon in Victorian waters. Fish species include blue-throated wrasse, Gunns leatherjacket, barracouta, mullet and sharks, and there is a mixture of invertebrate life. Further east, the Cape Conran area is also good for diving, especially in the West Cape Beach and Salmon Rocks areas (which are also good for snorkelling at low tide), and Beware Reef, which is covered in bull kelp and is sometimes used as a resting place by seals, in addition to its fish and invertebrate inhabitants.

S.E.A.L. Diving Services

Operating dive courses and charters at various places along the Gippsland coast including Inverloch and Cape Paterson

Great Ocean Road

The Great Ocean Road region of Victoria has some excellent diving sites, particularly around Port Campbell, Warrnambool and Portland. Visibility here is generally in the 5 to 15 metre range. Much of this area is known as The Shipwreck Coast and, as the name suggests, there are a large number of shipwrecks in these waters. Some of the wrecks are in quite shallow water, making them easily accessible when conditions are suitable.

Near Apollo Bay, the SS Casino lies at a depth of 9 metres about 400 metres offshore, while the Fiji is about 60 metres off the coast near Moonlight Head, scattered in water up to 6 metres deep. Close to Peterborough, wrecks include the Falls of Halladale, whose upright bow and rudder, and hull containing its cargo of slate, can be seen in 12 metres of water.

The most famous wreck in this area, however, is the Loch Ard, after which Lord Ard Gorge near Port Campbell is named. In 1878, it hit a rocky reef that runs out from the base of Mutton Bird Island and later sank. Only two of the 54 people on board survived. Today, the scattered wreck lies at depths of 10 to 24 metres. The hull can be penetrated, allowing some of the remaining cargo, which included lead ingots, tiles, crockery and bottles, to be viewed.

This area also has many offshore reefs suitable for diving. Terrain includes arches, canyons, caves and gutters, while the marine life includes sponge gardens and kelp, and fish species such as sweep, leatherjackets, Port Jackson sharks and morwong. For shore diving in this area, Peterborough has the best access.

The Warrnambool region offers both shore and boat diving. The breakwater pier is an interesting shore dive in depths up to 9 metres. It is home to creatures such as cuttlefish, pipefish, nudibranchs, sea stars, sweep and wrasse. About 250 metres off the end of the breakwater is the wreck of the La Bella, whose bow section is still intact. Other sites in the area, including Middle Island, Pickering Point and Stingray Bay, offer spectacular scenery with a diversity of both vertebrate and invertebrate life.

Further west, the waters around Portland provide some excellent diving. For an easy shore dive, try the Lee Breakwater, where you can gear up at your car, then climb down the rocks and into the water. Species found here include abalone, weedy and leafy sea dragons, eels, crayfish, stingrays and various fish and invertebrates.

Lawrence Rocks is considered by many to be the best dive in the Portland area. The underwater terrain is varied, including ledges that provide shelter for crayfish and abalone. One side of the rocks is shaped like an amphitheatre at a depth of 30 metres, and has sponge gardens and a variety of fish. Nearby is the Emily S, an old trawler that was scuttled and now lies upright on the seafloor at 24 metres.

Near Portland, Cape Nelson and Cape Bridgewater also provide good diving. There are numerous sites around Cape Nelson with varied terrain, and plant and animal life. Cape Bridgewater is home to seal colonies.

Scuttlebutt Scuba Charters

Launching from Fishermans Beach at Torquay, dive charters are available to wrecks and reefs along the coast