Cowrie Beach

Reef Dive | Shore access

Cowrie Beach | © Inknown

Depth: 2 m (6.56 ft) to 8 m (26 ft)

Cowrie Beach lies on the western side of Phillip Island between Point Grant to the south and Point Sambell to the north in the Phillip Island Conservation Reserve. It's a nice area for diving and snorkelling.

This area is more sheltered from moderate southerlies and in suitable weather an easy shallow dive can be had on patchy weed and reef with smaller fish and marine life. The gutters close to shore are worth investigation when conditions allow.

Ideal Conditions: The site faces west so is best dived when there have been easterly winds. Best at high tide. See WillyWeather (Point Grant) as a guide for the tide times and the height of the tide.

Parking: Ventnor Road, that runs to Point Grant, goes past the southern corner of the bay, where there is a small car park on the grassy bluffs overlooking Cowrie Beach.

Entry/Exit: Enter between the basalt rocks directly below the car park, or further to the south below the steep hill line. Exit at the same location, or around the point to Cowrie Beach itself.

Location: Ventnor, Phillip Island, Victoria 3922
MELWAY Ref: Page 731 B7
Emergency Beach Location: A14

Cowrie Beach at Cowrie Bay is a west facing, rocky bay lying 1 kilometre north of Point Grant. The bay is backed by low dunes and the bluffs. It is bordered by basalt platforms and reefs, which at low tide almost fill the bay. A steep, narrow, 400 metre long sandy beach backs the rocks. Waves average 1 metre at the beach at high tide, however at low tide, they break over the rocks and reefs seaward of the beach.

See also, Cowrie Beach in "Shore Dives of Victoria" by Ian Lewis, 3rd edition page 154.

Cowrie Beach Dive Sie Map | © The Scuba Doctor

Boon Wurrung / Bunurong country

Traditional Owners — This dive site is in the traditional Country of the Boon Wurrung / Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. This truly ancient Country includes parts of Port Phillip, from the Werribee River in the north-west, down to Wilson's Promontory in the south-east, including the Mornington Peninsula, French Island and Phillip Island, plus Western Port. We wish to acknowledge the Boon Wurrung as Traditional Owners. We pay respect to their Ancestors and their Elders, past, present and emerging. We acknowledge Bunjil the Creator Spirit of this beautiful land, who travels as an eagle, and Waarn, who protects the waterways and travels as a crow, and thank them for continuing to watch over this Country today and beyond.

 

Cowrie Beach Location Map

Latitude: 38° 30.654′ S   (38.5109° S / 38° 30′ 39.24″ S)
Longitude: 145° 7.273′ E   (145.121217° E / 145° 7′ 16.38″ E)
Datum: WGS84 | Google Map | Get directions
Added: 2022-03-12 22:18:49 GMT, Last updated: 2022-04-09 00:26:55 GMT
Source: Google Earth
Nearest Neighbour: Mandeville Road, Summerlands, 1,521 m, bearing 111°, ESE
Ventor, Phillip Island, Western Port.
Depth: 2 to 8 m.

DISCLAIMER: No claim is made by The Scuba Doctor as to the accuracy of the dive site coordinates listed here. Should anyone decide to use these GPS marks to locate and dive on a site, they do so entirely at their own risk. Always verify against other sources.

The marks come from numerous sources including commercial operators, independent dive clubs, reference works, and active divers. Some are known to be accurate, while others may not be. Some GPS marks may even have come from maps using the AGD66 datum, and thus may need be converted to the WGS84 datum. To distinguish between the possible accuracy of the dive site marks, we've tried to give each mark a source of GPS, Google Earth, or unknown.