Poor Knights Cleanerfish Bay
DESCRIPTION
Dive site review – Anna Clague
Photos by Andrew Simpson
This site has a little something for everyone. A great shallow bottomed bay with a wraparound wall leading to a small cave and a boulder strewn slope leading to deeper depths for those who are qualified.
The wall wrapping around the bay is quite shear on the northern end of the site. This end of the wall extends out as a reef finger under water and is covered with encrusting corals, Bryozoans and low growing red, brown and green Algae making a fantastic hunting ground for all sorts of invertebrate life including Nudibranchs, Starfish, Urchins, Shrimp and Ascidians as well as Eels, Triplefins and Blennies. This end of the wall is also home to a resident Painted Moki.
Follow the reef out with the wall on your right shoulder, if you are near the bottom you will pass between the wall and a massive boulder which is worth peaking beneath for glimpses of Crayfish and Scorpionfish. If you round the point it will lead you back into a small cave where you will often find Porae and Stingrays resting on the sandy bottom. The wall is very pretty and busy on this side too.
If you now turn and put the wall and cave behind you, you will see the boulder strewn bay extending out in front of you. The boulders are covered with kelp and we have seen plenty of stingrays cruising in and around this bay as well as schools of Koheru, Demoiselles and Big Eye in the shady spots. If you head over to where the boulders start to drop off to deeper water you can see schools of Pink and Blue Maomao. Keep your eyes open for Crested Weedfish in the kelp here as they have been spotted.
Head across the bay with the deeper side on your right and you will be lead back towards the southern side of the bay. You can follow the slope back up into the shallows of the bay at any point where you can spend plenty of time mooching around before ending your dive.
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