Leigh Jones Bay

DESCRIPTION

Located on the south coast of the Tawharanui Peninsula, Jones Bay is often overlooked in favour of Goat Island. But the lack of crowds is a bonus for divers and the easy entry and exits points make it excellent for all levels of divers.

The divesite itself, is made up of a big clear sandy bay with a reef on the right hand side which is clearly visable from the carpark and bank making it easy to assess the conditions and direction of travel.

Jones Bay is unfortunately not a marine reserve but despite this, the reef seems to be a bit of a nursery for many species especially in the spring and summer months. You can see thousands of baby spotties, as well as juvenile snapper and goatfish sheltering around the rocky reef structure and amongst the kelp. Plenty of triplefins and blennies reside in the reef, and you can also see squid eggs attached to the kelp. Nudibranches and many different varies of starfish and crabs can also be seen wandering across the sand.

The large sandy areas are a favourite of stringrays and eagle rays. Like most dive sites you just have to keep your eyes open and you will be rewarded - octopus, ocra and dolphin have all been seen at Jones Bay.

The beach is made up of large pebbly rocks and it has a steep slope into the water which means that the tides will have a big impact at this site like most others around Leigh. At high tide it is easy to cruise around the reef reaching 7-8m but at low tide the same spot can get as shallow as 2-3m so its important to bare this in mind. Also be aware that once you move off the reef and further out into the channel the current can pick up.

The visibility in and around the bay is not usually any more than 10m and is commonly around 5m, another reason to hunt around for the small stuff close to the reef. This site can throw up some real gems!