Meet the site
The Caves is the Bunurong coast's low-tide dive, a large shallow pool set in the intertidal sandstone platform between Inverloch and Eagles Nest that Parks Victoria describes as opening out to the sea and accessible for divers at low tide, with rockpooling on the platform around it. It is named for the wave-cut caves and overhangs in the low cliffs behind the platform, part of the dinosaur-fossil coast that runs to Eagles Nest, and it sits just outside the eastern boundary of Bunurong Marine National Park in the Yallock-Bulluk Marine and Coastal Park. The pool is the attraction: a natural aquarium a few metres deep, sheltered by the platform, with clear water, a floor of sand and rock, walls of kelp and coralline algae, and a resident population of fish and invertebrates – wrasse, zebrafish, juvenile leatherjackets and morwong, sweep, gobies and blennies, sea stars, anemones, crabs, shrimp, sea hares, abalone and small crayfish in the crevices – that can be watched at snorkel depth by children and experienced divers alike. Through the opening the reef continues seaward as gutters and ledges to about 8 m, with the same community as the marine park next door, including Port Jackson sharks and stingarees in the sandy gutters. The dive's rhythm is set by the tide rather than the swell: for an hour or so either side of low water the pool is calm and the opening passable; as the tide rises the platform floods, waves break across it and the opening turns into a rip, so timing and a prompt exit matter. The Caves suits snorkellers, families and beginners on calm mornings and gives more experienced divers a novel, sheltered way onto the Bunurong reef when the high-tide gully entries at Eagles Nest and Shack Bay are too rough. Fossil hunting on the platform is popular but the fossils are protected; look, photograph, leave.
What you might see
Wrasse, zebrafish, juvenile leatherjackets and morwong, sweep, gobies and blennies, sea stars, anemones, crabs, shrimp, sea hares, abalone, small southern rock lobster, Port Jackson sharks and stingarees outside the pool, kelp
Location
Intertidal rock platform with a large shallow pool opening to the sea on the Bunurong Coastal Drive between Inverloch and Eagles Nest, in the Yallock-Bulluk Marine and Coastal Park.
Facilities nearby
The Caves car park; no toilets (nearest in Inverloch 4 km); cafes and shops in Inverloch; sites are dived by independent divers and Melbourne/Gippsland clubs (SEADS – South East Australian Dive Society, Dive La Trobe, VSAG). Nearest air fills in Melbourne's south-east or by arrangement in the Latrobe Valley.
Before you make plans
Conditions, access and operator schedules can change. This is a location guide, not a dive plan. Ask a local operator about current conditions and suitability for your training and experience.
Sources & further reading
parks.vic.gov.auparks.vic.gov.aumelbourneplaygrounds.com.auRecord updated 26 Sept 2026. Source claims are being reviewed.