Poor Knights Hideaway Bay
DESCRIPTION
Dive Site Review by Anna Clague
Photos by Anna Clague and Tara Sutherland
Nestled into a corner near the gap between the two biggest islands in the Poor Knights group is Hideaway Bay – also known as Dutchman’s cove.
This great little dive site has plenty going on. In the winter season you have a pretty good chance of being buzzed by seals as they hang out on the rocks in the bay next door. These guys are like big balls of spaghetti in the water and really, really fast!
As you look into the bay there are two ways you can conduct your dive. You can hop in the water and follow the left side of the bay out, putting the wall on your right shoulder. This wall is gently sloped and rather knobbly and slowly gets deeper before making its way out to the point. This wall is covered with seaweeds and low growing corals making it ideal territory for small invertebrates to thrive. This in turn brings in many varieties of small to medium fishes looking for snacks and resting places.
If you opt to take on the right hand side of the bay you will have a very different dive. This starts with a shear wall that bottoms out at approx 18m on the sand. This sand gully is fairly short with a distance of about 30m across the base of the wall. However the sand gully widens and heads out slowly into the bay getting deeper as it goes. There is a regularly sighted Giant Boarfish around this area and keep your eyes open for stingrays and eaglerays snuggling down in the sand. Back at the wall if you keep going beyond the sand edge you will head back up onto some kelp covered boulder country. This gives homes to various Shrimps in the nooks and crannies, as well as Eels, Nudis, Urchins, and more solitary and school fishes.
No matter which way you head out of the bay you can follow the wall back into the bay on your opposite shoulder for the end of your dive. The bay shallows up to a great site for doing your safety stops. Mooch around here for as long as you need to, enjoying the light and watching the fish hanging about doing their thing in the shallows.
REVIEW
Just last weekend, Anna and Tara took some time out and went diving up in the Poor Knights Islands with Dive! Tutukaka. Sometimes we forget to take time out for ourselves however, sure we can all agree that summer is on its way so the time is now!
Spring time is well and truly happening in the Poor Knights Marine Reserve. The evidence is everywhere – the walls are covered in bluebell tunicates and the nudibranchs have been doing … well … stuff!!
It was a bit of a bumpy ride out on Saturday morning but by Sunday, the sun was starting to come out and we were greeted with hundreds of Bullers Shearwaters and the sight of Poor Knights Lillies showing their beautiful red flowers on the lofty heights of the islands.
The seal was a lucky shot on Anna’s behalf. Armed with a Nikon and the macro lens, and hovering underneath the boat on a safety stop in Hideaway Bay, this cheeky little beggar shows up and starts swimming around acting all coy – until the camera came out and then the antics became more pronounced. It was lovely to see the seals off the rocks and in the water! It is not often that we get to photograph them playing around.
The water is a blamy 15 degrees and we can see the salps starting to come through so now would be a great time to get out there and dive. With carpet sharks resting on the sand and eagle rays making an appearance, there is plenty to see at all depths.
