Looking Glass Isle (Broughton Island)
Looking Glass is a narrow crack, about 5–10 m wide and 40–50 m long, running through a small islet off Broughton Island, north of Port Stephens; it is mostly open to the sky so sunlight falls in vertical shafts. It is the main site for the endangered grey nurse shark colony, with groupers, trumpetfish and turtles as well. The entrance is about 26 m, shallowing to 12 m inside the gap and 15–18 m at the far end. Expect surge: divers stay in single file on one side so bubbles do not disturb the sharks.
Facts
- Region: New South Wales – Byron Bay to Eden (Australia)
- Area: Port Stephens & Broughton Island
- Depth: 8–26 m
- Level: intermediate
- Current: moderate
- Type: reef, wall, cave
- Coordinates: -32.62965, 152.31623
- Highlights: grey nurse shark, grouper, trumpetfish, turtles, light shafts
- Tips: Position is the published GPS outside the crack (WGS84). Boat only: about 12 km / 50 minutes from Nelson Bay marina. Broughton Island is in Port Stephens Great Lakes Marine Park / Myall Lakes National Park; weather (north-easterly or southerly winds) can keep boats in Port Stephens. Surge in the gap; watch buoyancy, it is shallowest inside.