Best New Zealand Dive Sites

Self-titled ‘obsessive-compulsive scuba diver’ Judy Ormandy spends as much time as she can exploring New Zealand dive locations. One of her locals is Taputeranga Marine Reserve.

The Taputeranga Marine Reserve, is the jewel in the crown of Wellington’s south coast, Since its establishment in 2008, marine life has flourished, a testament to the value of marine reserves as crayfish, paua and blue cod populations have regenerated and surged. I have spent many hours happily meandering underwater here. I’m going to make a big call and say is the best shore diving to be found in any capital city in the world.

A few of my favourite sites within the reserve include:

Mermaid's Kitchen

Mermaid’s Kitchen lies in the heart of the marine reserve, opposite Dive Wellington. Entering the water, make your way along rocky channels, with walls coated with dazzling jewel anemones, colourful sponges and brightly coloured nudibranchs. There is a gradual decline to a maximum depth of 15m. A confusing array of swim-throughs in the maze-like reef ensures maximum navigational confusion. Luckily, while retreating back to shore, you have the opportunity to interact with marauding kōura, cheeky blue cod and mischievous octopuses. A wee surface swim never hurt anyone either.

Snorkel Trail

This is the south coast site we retreat to when needing protection from a southerly swell, as it is ideally positioned on the shore side of Taputeranga Island. There is easy beach access to the water, and a relaxed ‘round the block’ dive from one side of the parking lot to another. The beauty of this site is that you never know quite what you will find. I’m still finding nudibranchs I haven’t seen previously. A highlight of this site was being buzzed by a seven gilled shark – I was buried in the rock, searching for nudibranchs, and turned around to find the shark’s shadow beside me. My immediate thought was that I was narced and hallucinating, but in only seven metres of water, this wasn’t the case.  Other treasures found here include crested weedfish and stalked jellyfish.  Snorkelling in the shallows, I’ve watched a wheke (octopus) devour a kōura (cray). The maximum depth is about 10m.

Elsdon Pipe

Elsdon Pipe is a long closed sewage outfall pipe. You can enter the water by either walking the length of the pipe and then dropping into the water or from the sandy beach. This dive is an easy navigation – out is a compass bearing south with the reef to your right.. and at your turnaround point, you simply turn 180 degrees and head north. This site is the South Coast at its finest, with numerous crayfish and paua, with schools of inquisitive blue cod, moki and spotties. It is slightly more vulnerable to swell, making a dive here in good conditions an absolute treat. 

The Yung Pen

The Yung Pen was a Taiwanese squid trawler that came to grief in 1982 in Owhiro Bay, after her crew had supposedly imbibed in too much alcohol. She lies in about 8m of water, 20 metres from shore. The site is an inauspicious one for ships, with the Cyrus and the Wellington sinking there in a large storm in 1874 and the Progress sinking in 1931. There are remnants of the 3 older wrecks still able to be found. The Yung Pen is home to numerous crays who have made their home in her overturned hull. Blue Moki, cod and wrasse swirl in the ‘fish bowl’ just past the Yung Pen.