The Navy Pier is the dive that put Exmouth on the international map and is routinely described as one of the best pier dives in the world. Built in the 1960s to service the Harold E. Holt Naval Communication Station, the 300 m T-shaped structure sits in a fully operational Defence area that was closed to the public for decades. That long exclusion, combined with strong tidal flows carrying nutrients from Exmouth Gulf, turned the forest of pylons into a dense artificial reef that operators call an oasis in the desert.

The dive is shallow — the sand beneath the T-head lies at roughly 10–15 m — and the attraction is the density of life rather than the topography. Every pylon is coated in sponges, soft corals and ascidians, and the rows of columns channel fish into huge schools of snapper, sweetlips and trevally. More than 200 fish species have been recorded. Large resident Queensland groper (one nicknamed the BFG) cruise the pylons, whitetip reef sharks and tasselled wobbegongs rest on the bottom, and in winter grey nurse sharks gather under the structure. Between the pylons, patient divers find frogfish, scorpionfish, flatworms, nudibranchs, octopus, cuttlefish and sea snakes. Visibility is modest, usually 3–10 m, and the light is dim under the deck, so it rewards photographers with strobes and divers comfortable in a busy, three-dimensional site.

Access is controlled. Only the licensed operator can take divers onto the pier, identities are checked at the gate, and a Defence surcharge covers licensing and security. Dives are run strictly at slack tide, so the schedule shifts daily. Importantly for travel planning, Dive Ningaloo's published status for 2025–26 is that the pier is closed for extensive maintenance while the operator awaits updates from the Department of Defence; confirm it has reopened before building a trip around it.

When it is open, the pier suits Open Water divers with some experience who are comfortable with low visibility and following a guide closely. It is often combined with Lighthouse Bay and Muiron Islands boat dives in the same week.

Only possible on a booked tour with Dive Ningaloo, the sole licensed operator. Divers meet at the operator in Exmouth and are driven about 15 minutes north along Murat Road to the Defence gate at Point Murat, where identities are checked (original passport or driver licence; photocopies refused). The group is escorted onto the pier, gears up on the deck and enters by giant stride or ladder near the T-head, with the guide leading along the pylons.

Dives are scheduled around slack water, so start times change daily with the tide and moon phase; one or two dives per session. A $50 per person Defence surcharge applies and minors need passport details submitted at least three days in advance.

The pier is on the sheltered Exmouth Gulf side of the Cape, so ocean swell rarely affects it; the controlling factor is tide. Tidal streams run very strongly along the pylons and dives are only run at slack water, which gives one or two windows per day depending on the moon phase — neap tides give longer, easier slacks. Visibility is typically 3–10 m and worst on spring tides and after strong easterly or northerly winds stir up the gulf.

Strong summer easterlies can make the surface choppy. Cyclone season (November–April) can close the facility. Low light under the deck makes a torch useful at any time of day.

Enter near the T-head, descend to the sand at 10–14 m and follow the guide along the rows of pylons, checking the bases for wobbegongs, frogfish and nudibranchs and looking up into the schooling snapper and trevally. The route usually works one side of the T-head then loops back under the deck. Hold 10–12 m, keep close to the pylons out of any residual current, and turn when the guide signals as the tide begins to run.

Safety stop beside a pylon before surfacing near the ladder.

Recreational only. Torch recommended; strobes for photography.

Dive Ningaloo holds the exclusive Commonwealth licence and runs single and double pier dives at slack tide (certified divers only) when the pier is open; other Exmouth operators such as Ningaloo Whaleshark Swim book customers onto these sessions. As of the 2025–26 season the pier is closed for extensive maintenance pending Department of Defence updates.