24 caves · down to 124 m · 9 suitable for an intro team
Cave diving in Mount Gambier
- Caves24
- Max depth124 m
- Water temperature10–16 °C
- Dive centres4
Diving and fills
Dive here with
Fills nearby
- Blue Lake Diving (Mount Gambier)Air to 230 bar (AU$12–17 by cylinder size) and 300 bar (AU$14 up to 12 l); nitrox (oxygen AU$0.08 per litre plus the air fill). Helium and sorb not listed
- The Habitat #99 (Mount Gambier)Air (compressor on site)
Why come here
Around Mount Gambier, on South Australia's Limestone Coast, lies a cave diving area of clear sinkholes and deep shafts, maze caves in soft limestone and low, silty sumps under the town. The water is around 15 °C all year and often very clear, though some sinkholes are murky and low passages silt out fast. From open water at Ewens Ponds to full cave in Tank Cave there is something for every level, and each site has its own required rating.
You can only dive here as a member of the Cave Divers Association of Australia: as a visiting diver you apply for a visitor permit at least 6–8 weeks ahead, with a sponsor who is a CDAA member and a log of your cave dives, and the CDAA assigns your level. Piccaninnie Ponds has been closed since February 2023, Ewens Ponds closes every year from 1 September to 30 November and the forest sites close on Total Fire Ban days; after heavy rain, stormwater can contaminate Engelbrecht's first sump.
Don't miss
- The Shaft (Allendale East): a shaft found in 1938 that opens into a huge chamber of very clear water at ~15 °C; you stay on a guideline, because it is easy to get lost here.
- Tank Cave (Tantanoola): a maze cave in soft limestone that grew by more than 700 m of passage and a first air chamber in 1993–94, owned by the CDAA since 2010–2011.
- Ewens Ponds: not a cave dive but a classic of the area: you glide through crystal-clear spring water at ~15 °C over water plants.
On a rest day
- Blue Lake (Warwar): Walk or drive the 3.6 km track around the crater lake, which turns a deep turquoise every November.
- Umpherston Sinkhole (Balumbul): A collapsed limestone cave in the middle of Mount Gambier, a sunken garden with terraces since 1886, where possums come out at dusk.
- Naracoorte Caves: World Heritage for its fossils: guided tours take you through decorated caves such as Victoria Fossil Cave, with the skeleton of a marsupial lion.
All 24 caves
1 closed not shown ·
| Site | Max depth | Type | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allendale East CavePermission neededBackmount · Full cave | 24 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Bakers CavePermission neededBackmount · Full cave | 33 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Dave's CavePermission neededEntry or dive feeSmall cylinders / no-mount · Full cave | – | Small cylinders / no-mount | Full cave |
| Engelbrecht Cave EastPermission neededSidemount · Full cave | 8 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Engelbrecht Cave East ExtensionPermission neededSidemount · Full cave | 22 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Engelbrecht Cave WestPermission neededSidemount · Full cave | 12 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Ewens PondsPermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 13 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Fossil Cave (Green Waterhole)Permission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Full cave | 16 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Gouldens HolePermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 26 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Hells HolePermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | – | Backmount | Cavern |
| Horse and Cart (Wye)Permission neededBackmount · Cavern | – | Backmount | Cavern |
| IddlebiddyPermission neededEntry or dive feeSidemount · Full cave | – | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Little Blue LakePermission neededBackmount · Cavern | 42 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Mud HolePermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Full cave | 17 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Nettlebed Cave (Mount Gambier)Permission neededEntry or dive feeSidemount · Full cave | 28 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| One Tree (Mount Schank)Permission neededBackmount · Cavern | 50 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Stinging Nettle CavePermission neededEntry or dive feeSidemount · Full cave | – | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Tank Cave (Tantanoola)Permission neededSidemount · Full cave | 20 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Tea Tree (Wye)Permission neededBackmount · Cavern | – | Backmount | Cavern |
| The PinesPermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Full cave | 43 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| The Shaft (Allendale East)Permission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 124 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| The Sisters SinkholePermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | – | Backmount | Cavern |
| Three Sisters (Glencoe)Permission neededSidemount · Full cave | 35 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
Certification requirements, configurations and trimix depths are estimates for planning. Always check them locally and dive within your training.
Map
Dive centres and fill stations
4 dive centres, fill stations and instructors
Aquifer Tec (Glencoe)
Glencoe SA
Training: CCR
Dealer of rebreathers and sidemount gear; rebreather courses on enquiry. Fills are not on the website.
Blue Lake Diving (Mount Gambier)
280 Cafpirco Road, Mount Gambier SA 5290 (next to Just a Bed Lodge)
Air to 230 bar (AU$12–17 by cylinder size) and 300 bar (AU$14 up to 12 l); nitrox (oxygen AU$0.08 per litre plus the air fill). Helium and sorb not listed
Ask
Fill station next to Just a Bed Lodge. Prices from an undated page: ask for the current ones.
Dive Experience (Mount Gambier)
Mount Gambier SA
Guided dives: Ewens Ponds
Guided dives at Ewens Ponds, boat-dive weekends and courses from Open Water to Advanced. Cave courses and fills are not on its own website: ask.
The Habitat #99 (Mount Gambier)
99 Jubilee Highway West, Mount Gambier SA
Air (compressor on site)
Ask
Accommodation for cave divers in the town centre, with a compressor, drying room, workshop and kitchen. Nitrox, trimix and oxygen are not on the website.
Order: partners first, clearly marked as partner; then dive centres by distance from Mount Gambier and independent instructors by name. Not a recommendation: check what they offer yourself.
On this list, or should you be? Get a free partner card →Where to stay
Find a place near Mount Gambier, Port MacDonnell
Villages that work well as a base for the caves in this region. Find a place for your team:
- Mount GambierBooking.com ↗
- Port MacDonnellBooking.com ↗
The links to Booking.com are affiliate links: if you book through one, DiveTripPlanner earns a small commission. You pay the same.
Practical info: rules, fills and emergency numbers
Emergencies
- 000. DAN Asia-Pacific: 1800 088 200 (free within Australia) or +1 919 684 9111. Chamber: Hyperbaric Medicine Unit of the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Port Road, Adelaide (~450 km), 24/7 for emergencies.
Access and rules
- Visitor permit: for certified cave divers who don't live in Australia. AU$50 for 3 months' membership; apply at least 6–8 weeks before you arrive, with a sponsor who is a CDAA member, your certifications and a log of your cave dives of the last 12 months (PDF). The CDAA assigns you a level; which certifications it recognises is not on its website.
- Booking: CDAA sites through the members' area; Gouldens, The Sisters and Fossil Cave through Parks SA (at least 2 divers, at most 2 dives a day, indemnity, 1–2 business days to confirm); the forest sites (The Pines, Mud Hole, Nettlebed, Iddlebiddy, Stinging Nettle, Hells Hole, Dave's Cave) through Forestry SA. Keys: Engelbrecht and Allendale East at the Lady Nelson Visitor Centre, Hells Hole at the Visitor Information Centre, Three Sisters at the Glencoe post office.
Closed or restricted
- Closed: Piccaninnie Ponds since February 2023 (algae, 'until further notice'); Ewens Ponds every year from 1 September to 30 November; the forest sites on Total Fire Ban days; and according to the CDAA now also Ten Eighty, The Black Hole, Bullock Hole, Ela Elap, Hancocks, Hann's Cave, Max's Hole and McKay's Shaft.
Gas and fills
- Gas: Blue Lake Diving fills air (230 and 300 bar) and nitrox; The Habitat #99 has a compressor for air. Helium, trimix and sorb: not confirmed in Mount Gambier, ask beforehand; the nearest confirmed helium fills are in Adelaide.
Water and season
- Water: ~15 °C all year; often very clear, but some sinkholes are murky and low passages silt out fast. After heavy rain, stormwater can contaminate Engelbrecht's first sump.
Getting around
- Travel: Mount Gambier airport (~12 km) with flights to Adelaide and Melbourne; by car ~450 km from Adelaide and ~435 km from Melbourne (~5 hours). Piccaninnie Ponds is ~32 km, Ewens Ponds ~36 km and Tantanoola ~29 km from Mount Gambier.
Rest day
- Rest day: the Blue Lake (Warwar) with its rim walk and tour, the Umpherston Sinkhole (Balumbul), the Tantanoola Caves and the World Heritage Naracoorte Caves (~90 km).
Good to know
- Read this first: the caves and sinkholes are for members of the Cave Divers Association of Australia (CDAA) with the right rating only. For the government's sites this has been fixed since 1998; private landowners let divers in through the CDAA. The CDAA was formed in 1973, after a series of fatal accidents. Levels: Basic Cave (cavern and sinkhole sites), Cave and Advanced Cave; every site has one.
- Traditional owners: the Boandik (Bunganditj).
News
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