We had to escape the increasing winds and ducked back into Botany Bay.  We were surprised to find that there were a series of yellow marker buoys prohibiting entry to large area west of bare island.  By our estimation the east edge of this area would be about the cave at the end of the Bare Island reef, the south side level with the end of Bare Island and the north edge of anchor reef, north taking in all of the isolated reefs and west way beyond any reefs that we are aware of. We have no idea what this is about other than it appears to be research related.

We manage to anchor on top of the reef, just outside the prohibited area.  At the bottom the viz is poor.  I find a rock cod on the sand that poses for me.  We swim west along to the end of the reef and around the corner.  My dry suit leaks again so I get cold real quick.  There are lots of nudies at the west end of the reef and we take pics of some of them.  On the way back we take the obligatory picture of the anchor.  I spy an octopus splayed out on the sand and it was not at all shy.  It would not move from it's location until we prompted it to.  Closer to our anchor point was a weedie and despite the poor viz and matter in the water I got a great head on shot.  Another octopus and a moray seemed to be eying each other up - the moray hanging well out from a crack gaping down at the octopus.

 

 

This site was last updated 28/10/11