Penguin Cove

The dive starts on a shallow shelf and follows a rocky reef that drops at roughly 45 degrees, while both arms of the cove turn into steep, deep walls. Large white-branched black coral trees grow on the points, a typical Fiordland sight caused by the dark freshwater layer on the surface. Crayfish crowd the cracks, and dogfish, carpet sharks, rays, eels and octopus are regularly seen. Yellow zoanthids, tube anemones, nudibranchs and brittle and snake stars cover the rock. It makes an easy start to a day of diving, but the sandy bottom silts up quickly with careless finning.