Diving New Zealand (North Island) – January 2024 by Alan McElroy – Part Two
Rainbow Warrior Wreck
On day 3 we made a slightly earlier start, meeting at the dive shop and taken by mini bus with dive kit in a trailer for a 45 minute drive north to Matauri Bay, where we launched their 7.5m rib from the beach, for a short boat ride to the wreck of the Rainbow Warrior.
The Rainbow Warrior was Greenpeace’s flagship that stopped in Auckland harbour on its way to protest France’s nuclear testing on the Mururoa Atoll, when it was sunk by French saboteurs on July 10, 1985. After the bombing Greenpeace gifted the Warrior to the sea and it was re-floated and towed, and re-sunk as an artificial reef in the Cavallii Islands. At a max depth of 26m the Warrior is now home to a huge variety of aquatic life and is a world renowned dive site.
On this dive we were led by one of Paihia dive guides along the whole wreck and through its centre which had broken up in many places. The wreck was full of jewel anemones and lots of colourful fish.
After lunch we headed to a reef dive site in the Cavalli Islands. which again had swim throughs, tunnels and small caves, On this dive I got chased by very irate yellow moray eel which took a dislike to me after taking a couple of photos of it. We then helped unload the Rib, wash it down and headed back to Paihia.
Poor Knights Islands
After a day of rest we left Paihia and headed 2 hours south to a small harbour of Tutukaka to dive the renowned sites of the Poor Knights Islands.
The Poor Knights are known as one of New Zealands premier dive destinations and consist of a group of islands 12 miles off the coast of Tutukaka. Although located in a temperate zone, the islands are washed by the East Australian Current, made famous in the film Finding Nemo. This current brings subtropical species to the islands, and also clear blue water, meaning the islands have a wonderful mix of subtropical and temperate species. Add to this the spectacular scenery above and below the water line, which includes towering cliffs, pinnacles, arches and caves,
We booked 3 days diving with Dive Tutukaka. Dive Tutukaka operate five dive boats to the Poor Knights Islands, so have options for beginners, advanced divers and snorkelers. We also stayed in their onsite Lodge, which although basic was air-conditioned and very comfortable.
Each dive day we just walked 50mts to the dive shop, signed in and sorted cylinders out. Although very busy as it was their summer holidays it is a very well organised operation that runs very smoothly. the boats were moored just 100mts from the dive shop.
The boat ride over to the Poor Knights Islands took around one hour, and on the first day was a little lumpy but not too bad and a bit smoother than on the club rib with Gerard coxing. (Only kidding Gerard) There are around sixty dive sites around the islands, so there is always somewhere to dive no matter the wind and swell.
For our first day we dived the sites named Middle Arch and Northern Arch. These spectacular dive sites were decorated with colourful sponges, algae, anemones, hydroids and bryozoans, but it is the fish life that is unforgettable. Swarming in the arch we encountered lots of Blue Maomao, Snapper, Kingfish, Trevally and Moki. Numerous ledges and cracks were home to Bullseyes, Scorpionfish, Sea Perch, Lord Howe Coralfish and many Moray Eels.
One of the big features of the Poor Knights Islands is the number and variety of morays. Seven moray species are seen around the islands, and on each dive we encountered several species and several dozen morays.
On the Northern Arch, we investigated the walls off the point, which drop into deep water and are covered in kelp and sponges. Here we encountered 3 Bronze Whaler sharks. These sharks are often seen around the islands, and although we managed to have a close encounter (within 4 mts), I was too slow to get a decent photo.
On day 2 we dived Jans Tunnel and Landing Bay pinnacle. Jans Tunnel dive started along a wall which at 18mts deep, then this levelled off into gully. We swam up the gully to about 5mts where it entered a cave. we swam in the cave for about 20mts where it opened up in the middle of the Island. We surfaced in a wide cauldron open to the sky with tall walls all around. After a few minutes of taking in the views we made our way back through the cave to the boat.
The Landing Bay pinnacle was similar to Hands Deep in Plymouth but with less kelp, better vis and not so deep. We swam down the boat’s anchor line to the top of the pinnacle at 5mts and dropped down to 20mts. We then swam around finding many morays and stonefish, but keeping an eye on the blue for bigger stuff.
On day 3 we dived at Ocarina Point and Sand Gardens. Ocarina Point also has a cave that goes into the island for 100mts. We did not enter the cave as we did not have a torch plus it was full of life outside. We saw a good number of nudibranchs which were much bigger than the ones we see in the UK.
Sand Gardens consisted of a sandy plateau known for its stingrays. We started the dive on a shallow wall covered in kelp with the sand bed starting at about 10mts, similar to the Cow and Calf in Dorset, but with 20+ vis. I led Sally for 45 minutes over the sand and saw no stingrays, just sand and a few scorpion fish. Sally said we should have stayed in the kelp which was full of fish and nudibranchs. I should have agreed.
What was nice about diving with Tutukaka Dives was that each day the skipper gave a history of the islands, and you also get to cruise through Southern Arch, the tallest sea arch in the Southern Hemisphere, and visit Rikoriko Cave, the largest sea cave in the world. This cave is so big that several boats can fit in it at once, and it has such amazing acoustics that it has been used for special music concerts. The dive boats return to Tutukaka Marina between 3.30pm and 4pm, depending on more side detours when marine life is spotted.
We had a great time in New Zealand, but to see it all we would have needed 3 months. If I had a chance again, I would do a whole month on the Poor Knights as there are over 60 dive sites visited by Dive Tutukaka.
Alan