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.

Perpendicular Reef

Reef Dive | Shore access

Weedy Seadragon at Perpendicular Reef
© Phil Watson

Depth: 1 m (3.28 ft) to 11 m (36 ft)

Level: Open Water and beyond.

Perpendicular Reef, named by Peter Fuller, is an interesting diving and snorkelling site in Queenscliff on the Bellarine Peninsula. The beach here faces south into Lonsdale Bay, Port Phillip. The site features a reef structure that runs perpendicular out to sea, in contrast to the reefs that run parallel to shore at nearby Cottage By The Sea Reef and Beach 10B to the east.

Between Shortland Bluff and Point Lonsdale is a curving, south-east facing, 3 kilometre long series of three beaches. The entire section is backed by foreshore reserves and the Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale Roads. There are camping and picnic areas in the reserve, just west of Shortland Bluff and further west at Golightly and Royal Parks. The central section of Lonsdale Bay Beach is backed by natural, vegetated dunes, with a walking track linking the camping areas. On the bluffs above Point Lonsdale are car parks, picnic areas and lookouts to view The Rip and passing ships.

What To Expect:
The critters here include Australian Fur Seals, Smooth Stingrays, Southern Fiddler Ray (aka Banjo Shark), Giant Australian Cuttlefish, damselfish, morwong, wrasse, Bluespotted Goatfish, Southern Blue Devil, Old Wives, Sea Hare, leatherjackets, Southern Rock Lobster (aka Crayfish), and Weedy Seadragons. Lots of pretty starfish as well.

Perpendicular Reef Parking
© Google Street View

Location: Smith Street, Queenscliff, Victoria 3225
MELWAY Ref: Page 500 G1
Beach Marker: 7B

Parking: While traveling west from Queenscliff towards Point Lonsdale on the Bellarine Highway (B110), turn left onto Smith Street. At the southern end of Smith Street where it turns right into Fraser Street you'll find a small reserve, beach marker 7B, and a track down onto the western end of Santa Casa Beach.

Warning: Perpendicular Reef is subject to a lot of boat and PWC traffic. Always take a dive float with a dive flag. Always go with a buddy and be extremely careful of the tidal flow.

Entry/Exit: Shore entry, from the western end of Santa Casa Beach in Lonsdale Bay at beach marker 7B.

Ideal Conditions: Conditions are usually best with no wind or after a few days of northerlies as surface conditions remain calm. Best dived on the ebb flow when it is low tide at The Heads as the current can be quite strong otherwise.

See WillyWeather (Santa Casa Beach) as a guide for the tide times and the height of the tide.

The Rip & Tides Warning: Always keep an eye on sea conditions throughout any shore or boat dive within "The Rip" (aka "The Heads"). This is a dangerous stretch of water, where Bass Straight meets Port Phillip, which has claimed many ships and lives. Please read the warnings on the web page diving-the-rip before diving or snorkelling this site.

Wathaurong (Wadda-Warrung) country

Traditional Owners — This dive site is in the traditional Country of the Wathaurong (Wadda-Warrung) people of the Kulin Nation. This truly ancient Country includes the coastline of Port Phillip, from the Werribee River in the north-east, the Bellarine Peninsula, and down to Cape Otway in the south-west. We wish to acknowledge the Wathaurong 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.

Perpendicular Reef Location Map

Latitude: 38° 16.327′ S (38.272111° S / 38° 16′ 19.6″ S)
Longitude: 144° 38.810′ E (144.646838° E / 144° 38′ 48.62″ E)
Datum: WGS84 | Google Map | Get directions
Added: 2022-04-04 17:00:46 GMT, Last updated: 2022-04-07 21:30:49 GMT
Source: Google Earth
Nearest Neighbour: Cottage By The Sea Reef, 263 m, bearing 95°, E
Queenscliff, Bellarine Peninsula.
Depth: 1 to 11 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.