Tech Tip:
Finger Spools Are Not Guideline Reels

The skills required to deploy a finger spool are different than those required to use a typical guideline reel. At first glance the simple spool looks easier, but compared to guideline reels the finger spool requires specific techniques for successful use. If this is your first finger spool then seek advice, get a demonstration, and most importantly you should practice under controlled conditions.

A common usage mistake is rewinding a finger spool in a manner that applies a lot of tension to the line, such as when hanging under a lift bag, causing the line to be very tightly wound on to the spool. Upon re-use the line doesn't smoothly unwind and sticks, causing the entire spool to be jerked out of the fingers or disappear with the lift bag.

Another consideration is the method used to rewind the line on to the spool. Hold the line loosely and use the spool to take up the line; if you hold the spool in a fixed position some wrapping motions with your hand will put a 'twist' in the line with each wrap around the spool. Depending on how you later unspool, you might wind up with a tangled mess of line (aka 'birds nest') if you hold the line in your hand while it unspools.

Although your finger spool is not a guideline reel the basic care is very similar. You should rinse your finger spool with fresh water following each dive. We recommend pulling some or all of the line off the spool before each dive, then rewinding it neatly but not too tightly, so as to help prevent problems during line deployment. If the line on your finger spool is new or very dry, we recommend pulling the line off into a bucket of water. This will moisten the line, precluding it from swelling on the spool and causing further issues or damaging the spool.

Finally, too much line on the spool can cause tangles during initial deployment, if you are having a consistent problem deploying your finger spool try removing a few metres of line.

Norman Point, South

Reef Dive | Shore access

Norman Point, South Dive
© Phil Watson

Depth: 5 m (16 ft) to 18 m (59 ft)

Level: Open Water and beyond.

Norman Point, South (aka Little Oberon Bay, North) is a diving and snorkelling site located on the southern side of Norman Point, at the northern end of Little Oberon Bay, on the western side of Wilsons Promontory. This dive site is suitable for both snorkelling from the shore and scuba diving from a boat. It has small granite boulders gently sloping down to a sandy bottom at a depth of 18 metres.

Norman Point separates Norman Bay from Little Oberon Bay and lies in the Wilson Promontory Marine National Park. Norman Point and Norman Bay were named after Captain William Norman, who brought Sir Charles Hotham to Melbourne in his ship Queen of the South in 1854.

Diving and Snorkelling at Norman Point, South

For a shore entry you walk from Tidal River/Norman Bay to Little Oberon Bay and then along the rocks towards Norman Point until you find a suitable entry point. It's a long walk in full scuba gear from the nearest car access point, so for scuba diving a dive boat entry is better.

This dive is about exploring the southern side of Norman Point. Underwater the rocks form many small caves and hollows before reaching sand a short distance from the shore. Be aware that there can be strong surge and currents away from the shoreline, especially at the tip of Norman Point.

There is plenty of fish life as well as small marine invertebrates.

Ideal Conditions: Norman Point, South is best dived with calm seas, no swell and no wind. Light offshore north-easterly to south-easterly winds may be acceptable. Avoid diving with moderate to strong onshore south-westerly to north-westerly winds. Because of the sometimes strong currents, Norman Point, South is best dived at slack water. See WillyWeather (Norman Point) as a guide for the tide times and the height of the tide.

Bass Strait Warning: Always keep an eye on sea conditions throughout any shore or boat dive in Bass Strait on Victoria's coastline. Please read the warnings on the web page diving-in-bass-strait before diving or snorkelling this site.

Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park

This site lies in Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park, Victoria's largest marine sanctuary. There is a huge diversity of marine life within the waters at the Prom. Brilliantly coloured fish are present such as the Red Velvetfish, Eastern Blue Groper and Wrasse as well as Leafy Seadragons and schools of Barber Perch. Intertidal molluscs such as limpets and snails, as well as anemones, brittlestars and seastars, are also common within the waters.

Divers will experience fascinating sponge gardens which consist of a techni-coloured assemblage of sponges, sea tulips, sea whips, lace corals and seafans. Octopus emerge at night whilst sharks and rays roam the sandy areas.

The offshore islands support many colonies of fur seals and oceanic birds such as Little Penguins, Fairy Prions, Silver Gulls and Pacific Gulls.

You are not permitted to carry a spear gun while snorkelling or scuba diving in Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park.

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.

Norman Point, South Location Map

Latitude: 39° 3.182′ S (39.053032° S / 39° 3′ 10.92″ S)
Longitude: 146° 19.351′ E (146.322514° E / 146° 19′ 21.05″ E)
Datum: WGS84 | Google Map | Get directions
Added: 2019-03-14 16:33:44 GMT, Last updated: 2022-04-23 19:44:52 GMT
Source: Google Earth
Nearest Neighbour: Norman Bay, South, 744 m, bearing 348°, NNW
Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park.
Depth: 5 to 18 m.

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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.