Dive Site - Kanowna Island, Seal School
| Dive Site - Kanowna Island, Seal School | |||
| Dive Location: | City / Island: | ||
| Kanowna Island, Seal School | Wilsons Promontory, VIC | ||
| Country: | Rating: | Max. Depth: | Difficulty: |
| Australia |  |
40 m | Advanced Open Water |
| Aquatic Name: | Water: | Altitude: | |
| - | Salt | 0 m | |
| GPS Latitude: | GPS Longitude: | GPS Datum: | |
| 39° 9.049′ S 39.150817° S 39° 9′ 2.94″ S |
146° 18.385′ E 146.306417° E 146° 18′ 23.1″ E |
Google Map | WGS84 |
| 2 dives at this location: | |||
| 208 | 253 | |||
| Map: | |||
| - | |||
| Comments: | |||
| The Kanowna Island, Seal School dive site at the northern end of Kanowna Island and is all about seeing the Australian Fur Seals that are found here. There are so many playful, curious seals that diving with them becomes an exciting and thrilling experience as they speed past and play with you. Kanowna Island is part of the Anser Group of islands at Wilsons Promontory, Victoria, Australia. It's an active, protected Australian Fur Seal colony and lies within the Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park. Kanowna Island is named after the SS Kanowna, once a hospital ship for wounded soldiers from Gallipoli, which sank off Wilsons Promontory after striking nearby Skull Rock in 1929. DIVING THE KANOWNA ISLAND, SEAL SCHOOL Entry/Exit: Boat. This dive site is fairly well sheltered from the prevailing westerly winds. The rocks in the area form crevices and gullies which are interesting to explore if you can take your attention away from the seals. The rocks feature a very thick covering of various kelps. Maximum depth in the rocky area is about 25 metres, but drops off to 40 metres quite close by. Surge can be an issue at this dive site. Kanowna Island is an important breeding site for a significant colony of over 9,000 Australian Fur Seals, and a small number of New Zealand Fur Seals, which feed in Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park and surrounding waters. These species were once more widely distributed around the Prom and are still recovering from near local extinction as a result of the sealing industry of the 1800s. This dive site is one of the seal colonies on the island. Motorised and non-motorised vessels including sea kayaks are prohibited from within 200 metres of Kanowna Island during the breeding season from November to January (inclusive), and within 50 metres of the island at other times of the year. Scuba divers diving from boats anchored outside the seasonal exclusion zones around Kanowna Island may approach closer to these islands provided that they are underwater and observe any other restrictions applying to approaching marine mammals. Ideal Conditions: This Kanowna Island, Seal School dive site is best dived with calm seas, no swell and no wind. Light offshore south-westerly to south-easterly winds may be acceptable. Location GPS coordinates from Google Earth. Approximate location only. |
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