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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the Osprey Reef location page.
Overview
A wall site on Osprey Reef's western edge named for a centuries old admiralty pattern anchor wedged inside a narrow cave passage at around 20 m. The coral terrace at 8 to 15 m steps off into a vertical wall that vanishes into more than 1,000 m of indigo Coral Sea water. Nutrient rich currents rise against the structure and pull in grey reef and whitetip sharks, schools of midnight snapper, red tail wrasses, and lyretail hogfish; eagle rays and the occasional dwarf nautilus drift past the deeper edges. Visibility routinely tops 60 m and can exceed 80 m from September to November when the trade winds drop.
Briefing note
Remote Coral Sea site reached only by liveaboard. The cave passage is narrow and requires good buoyancy and a torch. Liveaboard departures from Cairns can be limited during the January to February cyclone window.
What you'll see
6 species curated- year-roundGrey reef shark
- year-roundWhitetip reef shark
- year-roundMidnight snapper
- year-roundLyretail hogfish
- rareEagle ray
- rareDwarf nautilus
Conditions
| Month | Water | Visibility | Current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28–30 °C | 25–50 m | mild |
| Feb | 28–30 °C | 25–50 m | mild |
| Mar | 27–30 °C | 30–60 m | mild |
| Apr | 27–29 °C | 35–60 m | mild |
| May | 26–28 °C | 35–60 m | moderate |
| Jun | 25–27 °C | 30–55 m | moderate |
| Jul | 24–26 °C | 30–55 m | moderate |
| Aug | 24–26 °C | 35–60 m | moderate |
| Sep | 25–27 °C | 40–80 m | mild |
| Oct | 26–28 °C | 40–80 m | mild |
| Nov | 27–29 °C | 40–80 m | mild |
| Dec | 28–30 °C | 30–60 m | mild |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Next step
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