Burrill Rocks

Meet the site

Burrill Rocks is the signature dive of Ulladulla and one of the best temperate reef dives on the NSW coast. A group of rock outcrops rises from a sand floor about a kilometre offshore, south of Ulladulla Harbour and opposite the entrance to Burrill Lake. The northern wall tops out at 9–10 m, while the southern side drops beyond 23 m to sand. What sets it apart is the terrain: the rocks have split and collapsed into a jumble of boulders, leaving canyons and caves between them. Most caves are only a metre or two wide, but several are large, and many link up so you can move from one to the next with an exit never far away.

The best-known feature is the Arch, a larger cave entrance that is usually full of hundreds of silver sweep hanging in the gloom. North of the usual anchoring area the main cave system runs through the boulder field; to the south, another cave and tunnel open onto a sheer wall that is the dive's other highlight. Overhangs throughout are packed with fish: yellowtail, one-spot pullers, red morwong, eastern rock blackfish, luderick and the endemic eastern blue devilfish, which sits in most dark recesses. Old man snapper (Tasmanian trumpeter) are occasionally seen. Walls and cave ceilings carry sponges, sea squirts and small gorgonians.

Michael McFadyen rates it alongside Fish Rock Cave and the Poor Knights as one of the best temperate dives he has done, and the local shop lists it as its headline site. Visibility is often good by South Coast standards. The dive suits competent Open Water divers who have good buoyancy and are comfortable in overhead environments with daylight exits. Those who prefer to stay in open water can have an equally good dive following the walls. It can be dived several times without repeating a route, and a current running west gives the option of an easy drift along the rocks.

What you might see

Silver sweep (large schools in the Arch), yellowtail scad, one-spot pullers, red morwong, eastern rock blackfish, luderick, eastern blue devilfish, old man snapper (Tasmanian trumpeter), wobbegongs, Port Jackson sharks, sponges, sea squirts, gorgonians

Location

Cluster of rock outcrops about 1 km offshore and just over 4 km south of Ulladulla Harbour, off the mouth of Burrill Lake; walls from 9–10 m on top to more than 23 m on the southern side, riddled with caves and swim-throughs.

Facilities nearby

Ulladulla Harbour boat ramp, toilets and parking; air fills at Dive Adventures Ulladulla.