Diving in Eagle Hawk Neck

We begin our trip through Tasmania in the south west. The coast in the south is characterized by a rough coastline with several bays and lagoons. We settle in the little village of Eagle Hawk Neck. What we find here is no mass tourism. No huge hotels, large ports, boulevards et cetera. No, Eagle Hawk Neck is a small picturesque fisherman’s village that breaths love for nature and the sea. We spend the night in the lodge of our dive school here and during our first evening we are already surprised by small kangaroo’s in our garden. The small Wallabies come up to our veranda; we could only enjoy this sight for the rest of the evening.

The next day we wake up with sheer blue sky and a bright shining sun. This promises much for our travel through the Tasman Sea. During our first dive mysterious kelp forests welcome us. Our dive guide has already told us much about the kelp. In the Tasman Sea a special kind of kelp lives, the giant kelp. Kelp with height of over ten meters long stand in quiet bays along the coast. This Giant kelp is only known to live in California and Tasmania. Although the kelp is genus of brown algae they resemble a big plant or tree. With organs that look like the roots of a plant the kelp gets a hold on the sea bed. Swimming between the kelp is just like you have entered a fairy tale. The enormously long leaves of the kelp are kept floating thanks to the air cushions. As you come in deeper water you really stand in the shade of the kelp.

Between the kelp all kinds of animals come in search of protection. Between the rocks on the bottom you regularly can find rays, draught board sharks and various kinds of bottom fish. On the leafs of the kelp innumerable small snails live. Nearly under every leaf dozens of these snails appear. Swimming through the kelp forest is a real discovery trip where you can meet particular animals.

During one of our dives we saw something strange. On one of the kelp leafs we found a strange thing, just like an orange ball. We could not figure out what it was. Perhaps it was the eggs of some animal? Back on board we directly discussed this thing with our dive guide. We had to solve this mystery! According to our dive guide we had seen a "wandering anemone" (Phlyctenactis tuberculosa). This wandering anemone generally establishes itself on the kelp leafs but he can move around. At day time the polyps of the anemone are completely closed so it doesn’t look like an anemone at all. But at night this anemone reveals its true forms. The anemone unfolds itself and the polyps come out.

Something you just have to do each dive is searching for sea horses. Particularly the "weedy sea dragon" (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) is unique in Tasmania. The first few dives we really had to look well for this animal. He is an expert in hiding in the kelp. But almost every dive you will get the change to encounter a sea dragon. The splendid colors of the animal are more than impressive. Bright orange is varied with clear blue lines. With its long pointed nose with clear white to dots he pigheadedly looks into the world. He really has a funny face. The weedy seadragon is unique for the southern Australian area. It’s been seen from Sydney at the East coast to Perth at the west coast of Australia. But the Tasmanian sea dragon seems to be a little larger than its family members in the south of Australia. For us one thing is clear: it is really a splendid animal. Perhaps less spectacular than the weedy sea dragon are the other sea horses you can find in the kelp. But nevertheless also other seahorses are great to see.

Besides diving the kelp Tasmania has much more surprises. The rough coast line holds a large number of caves. At some places you can spot the caves already from the boat but at other places you really cannot imagine that there is a cave system below. Under the guidance of the dive guide you can take your time to examine the cave systems.In a lot of caves, and sometimes also between the stones outside the caves, you find large shells. The Australians call the shells Abalones. These large shells internally have a spiral structure. At the outside they have a number of holes, looking like small craters on the back of the Abalone. For the Tasmanians the meat of these shell animals is a real delicacy.

Beside these shells the caves are home to a multiplicity to life. The inner surface of the caves is fully grown with anemones and sponges in bright yellow, orange or pink colors. Colors you really do not expect in these cold waters. Between the yellow anemones some jewel anemones hide. This small anemone is called the jewel anemone because of the small white, almost silver, bulbs at the end of its tentacles which almost seem to give light.

But also atmosphere of the caves in general is fantastic. One of the most famous caves here is called the cathedral or devil’s eye. From inside the cave it really seems like two angry eyes are looking at you. Just like devil’s eyes. And with a bit of luck you might encounter a beautiful sepia during one of your dives.

For the lovers of wreck diving; the wreck of MS Nord lies before the South coast of Tasmania. It is the wreck of a 7 meters long steam ship. In the beginning of November 1900 this ship was on its way from Melbourne to Hobart when it hit very bad weather at the Tasmanian peninsula. The captain of the ship tried to get to a safe place in one of the bays but this could not prevent its sinking. The ship sunk and now lies on a depth of 35 - 40 meters straight on the floor of the Tasmanian Sea. The propeller and the lining of the ship have been grown over with sponges, anemones and sea whips. It is a pity that the depth of this dive site will limit your time because it is really a splendid ship to dive around. The rough sea which became fatal to the ship can also forms an obstacle for diving. Sometimes you must wait a day or two for the wind to calm down and some favorable current.