Flinders Reef

The Marietta Dal was a 7500 tonne liberty ship built in the USA in 1944 and is one of the most interesting shipwrecks off Brisbane. On May 15 1950, the 140 metre long ship was carrying a cargo of sulphur, oil, tractors and other general cargo when it ran aground on Smith Rock.

A small concrete cherub once marked the main entrance to this hidden cave off Moreton Island. While the guardian has since disappeared, this underwater world remains to be discovered by the adventurous diver.

Cherubs Cave is named after a cave system located under a large circular shaped bommie on the north-west side of the main bommie. The cave has four entrances that are difficult to find as they are covered with kelp. Once in the cave, light penetrates through the other entrances, aiding navigation.

Located 22 nautical miles offshore, conditions have to be perfect to visit this rocky reef that rises from 40 metres to 22 metres. A dive for experienced divers only, the rocky reef at Barwon Banks is riddled with caves, ledges, bommies and gutters.

Located on the northern side of flat rock, this site is suitable for all levels of divers with a small cave sitting at 10m and the reef dropping to a max depth of 30m. Turtle cave is a great site for drift diving around the edges of Flat Rock and seeing large pelagic life that frequents the coastline.

An advanced site located on the ocean side of Flat Rock, Blue Corner ranges in depth from 25 to 45m. Suitable for technical or experienced recreational divers only. Amazing site to see big sharks and all manner of pelagic life including whales. Well known for it’s population of Bull and Sandbar Whaler Sharks.

Flat Rock is located approximately 2.5 nautical miles north of Point Lookout. The Nursery is a beautiful, shallow dive site located on the southwestern corner of the reef at Flat Rock. Depth ranges from 5m to 15m out in the current line. Mooring block sits at 11m.

A deeper site for advanced divers, Shark Alley is a seasonal aggregation zone for endangered Grey Nurse (sand tiger) sharks. Being further out to sea, it is also a great place to see whales and other large pelagic marine life. Max depth is 28m with the reef rising to 12m on either side of the alley.

Located on the western side of Flat Rock, with depths ranging from 12m to 35m, The Pinnacles is suitable for Advanced divers only. It is a good spot for turtles, rays, and migrating humpback whales.

It is best to do this shore dive a half hour before high tide, that is when visibility will be the best and current will be slack. Watch out for boat traffic, have a dive flag up, and carry an SMB with you at all times. Make sure you have a surface watch. Watch out for fishermen as there could be a lot of lines in the water.