Seal Rocks sits on the Pacific Ocean along the New South Wales Mid-North Coast, with sites ranging from sheltered beginner reefs to a deep offshore artificial reef that drops to nearly fifty metres. Water temperatures peak in late summer and cool to their lowest in late winter, so a wetsuit is useful year-round. Shore dives at Shelly Beach and Bird Rock suit newer divers, while the Port Macquarie Offshore Artificial Reef, exposed to the East Australian Current, is strictly advanced territory. Resident species recorded here include loggerhead sea turtles, eagle rays, Port Jackson sharks, eastern blue groper, and nudibranchs. Two operators run trips from Port Macquarie.
Monthly water temperature across Seal Rocks's sites, from satellite sea-surface data corrected for depth. The band shows the site-to-site spread.
Temperatures are warmest from late summer into autumn and drop to their coolest in late winter and early spring. A five-millimetre wetsuit suits the cooler months, while a three-millimetre is comfortable in summer. Visibility at the offshore artificial reef can reach thirty metres, while shallower shore sites are more variable.
2 operators
Australia
Water temperature around Seal Rocks ranges from about 20°C in August to 26°C in March, based on satellite sea-temperature data for its dive sites.
In the warm season (about 26°C) a 3mm full suit is comfortable in Seal Rocks; in the coldest months (about 20°C) step up to a 5mm suit.
Fin maps 4 sites in Seal Rocks (4 scuba diving sites).
2 more sites to explore
