Diving Holidays At Port Macquarie - Where To Stay, Where To Dive
Australia's largest crane is at the bottom of the ocean near Port Macquarie
. So are plenty of grey nurse sharks, wobbegongs and colourful fish. Come and enjoy this awesome dive location. Port Macquarie holidays can easily be filled up with diving adventures, when you have all this on offer:Port Macquarie
There are several dive sites accessible from Port Macquarie. These include "The Cod Hole" where one can see soft coral, sponges, nudibranchs (a colourful and attractive sea slug) and wobbegongs (a "carpet shark" that spends a lot of its time resting on the sea floor) in and around the natural coral arch present at this site.
All levels of divers can enjoy "Bird Rock" which has a maximum depth of 13 metres, and features abundant marine life around the rock. Somewhat more challenging is "Yabbies", which consists of a rising rock plateau. There is also a lovely sponge garden a short swim away from the rock. Yabbies is around 30 minutes south of Port Macquarie.
"Shelley Wide", as the name might suggest, is a reef quite considerable in size. A single dive here won't be enough to appreciate all the varied marine life here. At least you'll get a taste!
Plenty of marine rock growth and accompanying fish make "The Wall" another good option.
Beautiful "Barry's Bay" is where you'll likely have the chance to join plenty of larger sea creatures for a pleasant swim. Viewing possibilities include turtles, octopuses, wobbegongs, grey nurse sharks, along with friendly fish.
Laurieton / North Haven
Be prepared to come face to face with an eyeful of many Grey Nurse Sharks if you decide to dive at Cod Grounds, a dive site near North Haven. The sharks seem pretty unperturbed by divers' presence, calmly gliding about, as schools of colourful fish also drift about. North Haven is about a 45 minute drive south of Port Macquarie.
The Titan
The Titan crane has a long and very colourful history. Having been built in 1919, it was the biggest crane in southern Australia during its 70 year plus career. It was in constant operation loading and unloading warships during World War II, and was also used in the construction of some of Sydney's major bridges, namely the Iron Cove, Gladesville and Spit Bridges. After a controversial sale of this historic piece of equipment to a Singaporean company, more controversy followed with the decision, against some expert advice, that the Titan be towed to Singapore. The nation's loss, and then the new owner's loss is now divers' gain, as The Titan sits 40 metres down, off Point Perpendicular, near Laurieton. This top heavy crane sank in late 1992, during that fateful towing attempt. Soft Sponges and coral now thrive on the Titan's frame, as giant cuttlefish and others now also make it home.
Bonnies Reef
One of several more options in the Laurieton area, Bonnies Reef is home to sea spiders, sting rays, eels, gropers and other interesting characters.
Where to Stay
With 4.5 stars and a central location, The Mercure Centro is Port Macquarie's premier hotel. Staying here gives easy access to Port Macquarie's own great dive sites, with additional diving options an easy drive to the Laurieton / North Haven region just to the south.
The comfort of your Port Macquarie hotel will be your welcome spot for relaxation after an exciting day's diving.
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