Poor Knights Ngaio Rock

DESCRIPTION

Dive Site Review by Anna Clague
Photos by Anna Clague and Andrew Simpson

This is a site for many divers as it has easy access to deeper dives that can be conducted on a wall from top to bottom and back again. Ngaio Rock itself breaks the surface and can be snorkelled inside of as there are nooks and crevices that can be entered.

Look at the rock with the mainland behind it, then imagine underwater you have a reef arm heading north for approx 200m and wrapping back towards the Poor Knights Islands. Ngaio Rock is being held in the fist of this reef arm.

You can start on the outside (mainland side) of the underwater reef arm – you can usually see this from the surface. Drop down over the top of the reef and level off at whatever panned depth you are trained for. If you put the reef on your left shoulder you can happily follow this back around into the South Harbour side of the bay – slowly wending your way up the reef checking out the resident wildlife on the way. If you have plenty of air you can actually follow the reef back in towards Magic Wall which is a great place to end your dive.

You will quite often find hunting parties of Kingfish around the Ngaio Rock area and in summer you will see Stingrays cruising the walls here and hanging in the sandy patches off the reef. We have sighted  Archidoris wellingtonensis Nudis (NZ’s biggest Nudi) at the base of the rock and Sharks in the deeper depths. The walls are covered in corals and kelp providing food and shelter for all sorts of fishes and invertebrates. If the vis is good look out to the Blue, if the vis is low look into the wall and enjoy.