Folks,

Disclaimer: sorry for my naive questions, but I've just made my first dive in Australia and I have plenty to learn.

I was at Portsea back beach last Sunday, and was rather impressed by the surf -pretty lame by your standards, fierce by mine- and by the ebb driving me out to sea. After this experience, I came to the conclusion that I should seek something more tame.

Portsea and Quarantine station/Quarantine reef seem worth seeing -I don't spearfish, I'm in it just for the depth and the beauty- but I have been told the tide is an issue there... and I have precious little experience in tide and surf (I hail form Italy).

Therefore, could someone share his/her experiences in that zone ? I suppose I can dive from the beach at Police point and then venture up to Quarantine station, but what about currents and visibility ?

Besr regards,
Luca.

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

Pretty hard currents there unless your on slack tide. Also I didn't think you could access quarintine from the shore, I'm pretty sure there is a sign that says you can't swim there. Your better off coming back up further into the bay to Mt Martha or Mornington. It's less affected by the current to the point where you wouldn't even notice it most of the time.

_________________
I don't get sea sick, the sea gets sick of me!

Yep, you're right; I checked with Park authorities: no way to swim from shore... but my idea was to start from Police point. Actually, in Quarantine bay there are a few artifacts (anchors, shells, jugs) that can be nice to have a look at.

By the way, what is a "slack tide" ?
From Google maps I can see a little port and a few rocks that could make for a nice entry point, but I don't know the depth there, do you ?

Thanks for all the info.

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

Slack tide is when the tide is at its highest or lowest and there is little or no movement in the water.

Not sure where your talking about but the best way to find out is to go for a dive.

_________________
I don't get sea sick, the sea gets sick of me!

Crystal clear, thanks.
Indeed, but I would like to know the depth of water beforehand. I presume a nautical chart is in order.

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

It will get deeper the further you go out

_________________
I don't get sea sick, the sea gets sick of me!

Good way to check for the slack tide is to visit http://www.bom.gov.au/oceanography/tides/MAPS/vic.shtml and select "Port Phillip Head Steams" - that will give you the time of slackwater (as well as current direction and speed - blue is flood, red is ebb) at the heads, so any site close to the heads will be at the same (or close enough too). The stream speeds are in knots.

The further into the bay you go, the less strength the current will have, so ... its easier

Slack water can last for as little as 10 minutes so just be really careful. I also recommend that if you are doing any diving at sites near the heads (on the portsea side) aim to do it at the slack water turning into a flood current, so if you do get caught in current, it will take you *into* the bay rather than out through the heads - though around the heads are a very strange place with lots of eddies and what not which can cause reverse currents in some spots.

If you're across at Queenscliff back beach (highly recommend cottage reef - its amazing and not just for spearing) you ironically want to do that on an ebb current. Front beach is again reversed so you want to do it on the flood. (this is all if you're trying to avoid current that is... drift dives are fun sometimes).

Tidal streams near heads can be very fast, so if you're doing this kinda thing, carry a surface marker of some kind with you and make sure you have someone watching where you are (from a boat or shore - probably should be doing this anyway).

Thanks for all the useful info... just one more question: I suppose the further out the stronger the current is; hence, if I started to notice a drift, I could swim towards -more or less perpendicular to the current- the shore and keep on diving where the current is weaker, right ?

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

You really want to have a chat with Brett, he's on the way down there too. Send him a message on here and I'm sure he'll help out. Been diving that area for longer than I've been alive and a keen freediver to boot which is rare down here!

His names in pink on here!
Brett Illingsworth

_________________
Like a farken underwater ninja!

The fish were blinded by overexposure to his pure awesomeness!

yes, i have found (salvaged) a lot of old bottles while on SCUBA here.
it is an underwater sand dune system that constantly moves (changes) with the tide going in and out of "The Heads" brining up stuff that was chucked over the side way back in the day when they were quarantining the tall ships.
8m-22m depth
do it on a drift to cover the vast amounts of nothingness then you might get lucky and find a divit and there will be heeps of old bottles. if you know what your looking for you can find the goods!

sic pic of you in the water !
oZ
ps.not worth freediving

Sic pic... what does it mean ?
Yep, I think I will have to go somewhere else.

I'm just looking for 15-20mt of depth, rocky bottom (possibly a cliff or outcrop), shielded by the surf, close to shore, unaffected by the tide.... am I being too choosy ?

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

your Avitar the dude on the old Bomber

Oh, I wee: "slc" stands for "slick"
Yep, the picture is nice: shot off the coast of Turkey, about 15m deep, by a professional photographer (I was the only freediver on that scuba trip).

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

By the way, that's not a bomber, but a C-47 -a transport aircraft- owned by the Turkish Air Force and sunk as artificial reef some years ago... it detracts from the drama, I know.

_________________
Best regards,
Luca.

He actually means sick, somehow this became a word meaning good amongst a particular demographic that I didn't actually expect Oz to be a part of. I would have expected more of a generation X word like cool.

_________________
WARNING: CONTAINS CARROT