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Divers Den

PICCANINNIE PONDS

The Limestone Coast of south eastern South Australia is littered with limestone caves and sinkholes. In fact, the township of Mount Gambier is built over them!

The Piccaninnie Ponds Conservation Park is just 30 kilometres (19 mi) south east of Mount Gambier near the coast and the Victorian border.

There are two main ponds containing crystal clear water which has been filtered through the limestone substrate for thousands of years. Both ponds are interlinked only separated by a small wall of weed.

Shallow narrow channels meandering through the coastal marshland link Piccaninnie Ponds to the sea but, unlike nearby Ewens Ponds, snorkelling to the coast through the wetlands is not allowed.

The first pond is a water filled doline, a collapsed limestone cave, the size of two basketball courts and approximately 13 metres (45’) deep.

The bottom of the lake is silty and easily stirred up; and the sides of the lake are covered in reeds and aquatic weed that support eels and other species of native fresh water fish.

The eastern side of the pond has a jetty for easy access to the crystal-clear water and on the west side there is a huge underwater trench called the ‘Chasm’.

The first sight of the Chasm after snorkelling across the first shallow lake is absolutely breathtaking!

The Chasm is a 35 metre (115’) deep narrow sheer walled underwater canyon which continues on into a very narrow constriction at the bottom called the ‘Cork Screw’.

The Cork Screw is narrow and deep, well in excess of 40 metres (130’), and extremely dangerous.

On the west side of the Chasm scuba divers can enter the ‘Cathedral’, a spectacular underwater cavern with almost pure white limestone walls. The entrance is between 10 and 24 metres (30-80’), and inside, the top of the Cathedral is six metres (20’) in depth, with the bottom around 35 metres (115’).

Lives have been lost in Piccaninnie because of the depth, and the dangers of zero visibility, ‘black out’, caused by fine silt which is easily stirred up. Proper training and certification are an absolute must for scuba divers.

Both scuba divers and snorkellers require a government permit which can be acquired from the National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia, and bookings are essential. Refer to the footnote below.

Scuba divers require a Cave Divers Association of Australia (CDAA) approved Basic Cave certification to obtain a permit.

Special thanks to Tim Muscat of Mount Gambier Technical Diving.  
Copyright © 2024Steve Sinclair

FOOTNOTE: Piccaninnie Ponds is currently experiencing a significant bloom of filamentous algae. While not believed harmful to people it has reduced visibility in the ponds and impacts on the aquatic vegetation. As a result, the ponds are closed to the public for water-based activities and we will not be taking bookings for diving and snorkelling as a quality visitor experience cannot be guaranteed. Minimising disturbance in the ponds during this time will also help the currently stressed aquatic vegetation recover more quickly.

Nearby Ewens Ponds provides an experience similar to Piccaninnie Ponds.

Footnote obtained from the National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia website (2024).

OTHER GREAT SINKHOLES WHILE YOU ARE THERE
Ewens Ponds, The Shaft, Pines, Kilsbys, Little Blue, Gouldons and One Tree.

2026 GREAT AUSTRALIAN DIVE CHALLENGE
Dive Registration
To register this dive for validation, go to: www.50greatdives.com.
Dated image of entrant’s government permit showing date & Piccaninnie Ponds required.

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