Bay of Islands

Meet the site

The Bay of Islands is the place the Bay of Islands Coastal Park is named for: an irregular, semi-circular bay 5 km west of Peterborough with a dozen or more large limestone stacks and islands scattered across it, together with reefs and rocks, below 10–20 m limestone bluffs. It has the drama of the Twelve Apostles with a fraction of the visitors, and unlike the Apostles it has a boat ramp. Underwater the stacks are limestone pillars rising from a sand and reef floor in 10–20 m, their bases undercut into ledges, overhangs and small caves and their walls covered in kelp on the lit faces and sponges, ascidians, bryozoans and hydroids in the shade. Sand channels run between them. Crayfish are abundant in the undercuts, abalone on the lower walls, and the fish life is rich for the coast: blue-throat and senator wrasse, magpie perch, sea sweep in schools, zebrafish, herring cale, boarfish under the ledges, Port Jackson sharks and rays on the sand, and Australian fur seals from the Lady Julia Percy and Cape Bridgewater colonies passing through. In settled autumn water with 10–15 m visibility, circling the base of one of the big stacks with the light coming through the kelp is as good as anything on the Victorian open coast.

The Scuba Doctor lists it at 2–20 m for Open Water and beyond and notes plenty of interesting structure to explore; the practical constraint is that the bay is less sheltered than Crofts Bay next door and the currents between the stacks pick up when the outer reefs are breaking. It is essentially a private-boat site, launched from the ramp at Boat Bay at high tide on a low swell, and it rewards a group with their own boat and a settled forecast far more than a casual visit. A dive flag is essential because the ramp is busy with cray boats in season. For most visitors the bay will be a lookout; for a few it is one of the best-kept secrets of the Shipwreck Coast.

What you might see

Southern rock lobster (abundant), black-lip abalone, blue-throat and senator wrasse, magpie perch, sea sweep, zebrafish, herring cale, longsnout boarfish, Port Jackson sharks, smooth rays, Australian fur seals (transient), kelp, sponges, ascidians, bryozoans

Location

Semi-circular bay studded with large limestone sea stacks and reefs, 5 km west of Peterborough, with the Boat Bay boat ramp at its eastern end; depths 2–20 m among the stacks.

Facilities nearby

Boat Bay ramp with trailer parking, toilets and picnic area; Peterborough general store and pub 5 km; no air fills nearer than Warrnambool.