Navy Pier

Navy Pier is consistently rated among the world’s top ten shore dives, located at an active Australian Defence facility 14 kilometres from Exmouth.

Overview

The 300-metre pier has been protected from public fishing for decades, allowing an extraordinary density of marine life to accumulate in shallow water no deeper than 15 metres. Soft corals and sponges encrust the pier’s steel pylons from top to bottom, forming a de facto artificial reef that functions, as one operator puts it, as “the marine equivalent of an oasis in the desert.”

Visibility is typically poor by Ningaloo standards — 3–10 metres depending on tide and weather — but the sheer concentration of species compensates entirely. Confirmed residents include grey nurse sharks (present seasonally in cooler months), white-tip reef sharks, wobbegong sharks, a famously large resident grouper estimated at around 300 kg, schooling trevallies, snapper, rabbit fish, fusiliers, moray eels, scorpionfish, frogfish, sea snakes, nudibranchs, flatworms, octopus, and a full complement of coral reef fish including butterflyfish, angelfish, moorish idols, and parrotfish. Over 200 species have been documented at the site.

Diving is entirely tidal-dependent: only slack tide allows safe conditions, as strong currents otherwise make the site undiveable. The site is operated exclusively by Dive Ningaloo, which holds the permit required to enter the Defence Restricted Area. Under-18 divers require advance passport approval. Night dives are available and particularly rewarding.

Site Information

• Location: Ningaloo Reef, Exmouth, Western Australia
• Entry Type: Shore entry
• Site Type: Reef
• Difficulty Level: Intermediate
• Maximum Depth: 15 meters
• Visibility: 3–10 metres (tidal/weather dependent)
• Currents: Strong when not at slack tide; dive timing is tidal-dependent

Sources: Dive Ningaloo, ScubaBoard — Navy Pier Exmouth, DiveZone, Ningaloo Whale Sharks, Brooke Pyke Photography. Last updated 2026-06-18.