Buckleys Cave is the shore entry for the whole outer Point Lonsdale reef, and it carries one of the best-known stories on this coast. William Buckley, a convict who escaped from the short-lived Sorrento settlement in 1803, lived for 32 years with the Wathaurong people, and the cave in the cliff below the lighthouse is by tradition one of his shelters; he walked back into European society at Indented Head in 1835. The Scuba Doctor listing takes the name for the dive site directly below, and describes 'very interesting shore dives' in 2–10 m that take in Mushroom Rock, Shark Gutter and, for those who go further, the wrecks of the Glaneuse, George Roper, Black Boy, Holyhead and Gange on the Lonsdale Reef.

The platform is cut by gutters running out to sea, of which Shark Gutter is the main one, between ledges of limestone that carry kelp on top and are undercut beneath. Mushroom Rock is a stack on the outer platform. Beyond the gutters the reef flattens into the ledges and sand where the iron of the sailing-ship wrecks lies, most of it at 4–10 m. The fauna is that of the exposed Heads reef: crayfish and abalone in the undercuts, big wrasse, sweep and morwong over the ledges, seadragons on the sand, zoanthids and sponges wherever the current reaches, and seals from the point.

This is the most demanding shore dive in the region. The listing says these dives 'are for experienced divers only' and that 'skill is required to pick the conditions and times the site can be dived' – the ebb slack on a calm day, and nothing else. The reward is access from a car park to a wreck-strewn Bass Strait reef that charter boats rarely visit. The site is within the Point Lonsdale section of the marine national park (the listing refers to the former Harold Holt Marine Reserve); nothing may be taken.

Park at the Point Lonsdale lighthouse car park (free, toilets) and take the path from the lighthouse down past Buckley's Cave – the listing describes access as 'via the path from the lighthouse, past Buckley's Cave, straight into the water, or out onto the platform', and rates the difficulty low, especially at low tide. The platform is sharp limestone with gutters and is only walkable near low water; carry gear in one trip. Exit is back onto the platform at the same gutter before the flood.

Air fills Dive Victoria Group, Queenscliff (5 km). Melway 499 J7, beach marker 1B.

Shore dives on the Point Lonsdale platform are only possible at slack water at the end of the ebb, in the 20–40 minute window before the flood begins to pour in over the reef; the Point Lonsdale Light listing warns 'do not attempt this dive with the incoming tide washing in over the Point Lonsdale Reef, as you will be easily swept away'. Slack water at Port Phillip Heads does not coincide with high or low water: it falls roughly three hours after high or low water at Point Lonsdale, and the usable window is typically 20–40 minutes. Use the Ports Victoria / Port of Melbourne slack-water predictions for The Heads (also republished by charter operators and WillyWeather 'Rip Bank') rather than a standard tide table.

The platform faces the Rip and Bass Strait: it needs a swell under about 1 m and no southerly or westerly wind – in practice a few days of northerlies or a dead-calm morning – and even then surge runs through the gutters. Winter brings 11–13 °C water and bigger swells; late summer and autumn give most of the workable days. Visibility on the platform is usually clear (5–15 m) because the water is straight from Bass Strait.

The listing adds: 'These shore dives are for experienced divers only. Skill is required to pick the conditions and times the site can be dived.'

Enter from the platform at the end of the ebb, swim out through Shark Gutter to Mushroom Rock and the outer ledges at 6–10 m, then choose one target – the Glaneuse to the west or the George Roper/Holyhead field to the south-west – and turn after 15 minutes regardless; return along the gutter to the entry before the flood. Float and flag, and a second exit point agreed in advance.

No commercial operator runs these shore dives; Dive Victoria Group (Queenscliff) can advise on conditions and occasionally guides the platform for experienced groups. Dived independently by Bellarine and Geelong club divers on the rare calm ebb slacks.