Boltons Beach (Swansea)

Meet the site

Boltons Beach is a family-friendly snorkel south of Swansea, rated 5 out of 10 by the Marine Life Network guide. Granite rocks with kelp in 2-4 m shelter crayfish and abalone, and the fish list includes wrasse, leatherjackets, barber perch, whiting and garfish.

The 800 m walk from the car park keeps it quiet, and the view across Great Oyster Bay to the Hazards of Freycinet is outstanding. It is best treated as a snorkel rather than a scuba dive, although a short, shallow scuba dive is possible for those willing to carry gear. Families can combine it with the beach, which is usually quiet even in summer.

The western shore of Great Oyster Bay around Swansea is a quiet stretch of coast known more for beaches, vineyards and the convict-built Spiky Bridge than for diving. Water inside the bay is often calmer but less clear than on the ocean coast, and several good sites are reached across private farmland, so local permission is part of the planning.

Practical points apply to all of these shore sites. There is no dive shop, air station or hire between Hobart and Bicheno, so divers bring filled cylinders and all equipment. Mobile coverage is generally good along the highway but patchy at the water's edge, and the nearest hyperbaric chamber is the Royal Hobart Hospital, one to two hours' drive away, so conservative profiles and oxygen in the car are sensible. Water temperatures range from about 11 °C in winter to 17-18 °C in late summer, so a 7 mm wetsuit with hood or a drysuit is standard year-round.

What you might see

Crayfish, abalone, wrasse, leatherjackets, barber perch, whiting, garfish, kelp

Location

Granite rocks with kelp at Boltons Beach south of Swansea, a family-friendly snorkel reached by a walk of about 800 m from the car park.

Facilities nearby

Car park only. Swansea: toilets, cafes, supermarket, fuel, boat ramp and accommodation; nearest air fills in Hobart or Launceston.