Blue Pool (Carrington Falls)

Meet the site

The Blue Pool is a curiosity rather than a destination: a freshwater creek pool high on the Illawarra escarpment in Budderoo National Park, a few kilometres from Carrington Falls. It sits at about 590 m altitude, is roughly 60 m long north to south and 40 m wide, and reaches exactly 4 m at its deepest, with 2–3 m around the sides. Water flows in from the north over a rock bar.

Despite the name, the water is not blue but tannin-stained, the colour of tea, and visibility is limited to about 3 m, dropping to a metre or less if the fine bottom is disturbed. The bottom is a mix of sand, rocky areas and many fallen tree branches that have washed or dropped into the pool. Life is freshwater and modest: yabbies (freshwater crayfish), tadpoles, aquatic insects and spiders. McFadyen also noted rubbish such as batteries and bottles – a clean-up dive would not go amiss.

The appeal is the novelty of a highland bush dive and the setting, with a camping area beside the pool offering wood barbecues, tables and space for tents and camper trailers. It is extremely easy – air consumption on a 20-minute dive is minimal – and it can make a pleasant add-on to a Southern Highlands weekend or a chance for divers to try freshwater conditions. Divers should watch torch cords and hoses around the branches, use good buoyancy to preserve the little visibility there is, and remember that the altitude slightly alters dive-computer and table calculations.

What you might see

Yabbies (freshwater crayfish), tadpoles, aquatic insects, water spiders

Location

Naturally dammed creek pool about 60 × 40 m and 4 m deep at 590 m altitude in Budderoo National Park near Carrington Falls, Robertson.

Facilities nearby

Campground beside the pool with wood barbecues, tables and tent/camper sites; pie shop and café in Robertson; no air fills nearby.