Larry's Ledge and the adjoining Outside Shark Gutter form the easy, current-sheltered finishing leg of a Fish Rock cave dive, and are named — Larry's Ledge, at least — for a long-serving local dive guide who made the flat rock shelf just outside the cave's shallow entrance his signature stop. The ledge sits at an average depth of about fourteen metres, flat enough to hold a group comfortably out of any current running past the point, and it has built a reputation as a reliable vantage spot for hammerhead sharks passing through in the warmer months, on top of the wobbegongs, and general reef fish that use the ledge for shelter. Divers typically arrive here having just swum the length of the cave, so it doubles as a natural rest and regroup point before either finishing the dive or pushing on toward the Aquarium.

The Outside Shark Gutter, close to the main southern mooring, extends the same idea into slightly deeper water: a gutter positioned to give an extended, unhurried view of any big pelagic species moving past the point, backed by schools of fusiliers and batfish and the usual scattering of macro life in the surrounding rock. Because both sites are shallow, sheltered and close to the mooring, they are a natural choice for the tail end of a dive when air or no-decompression time is limited, or as an easier alternative on days when current rules out the Pinnacle or Colorado Pass. Guides use the ledge specifically to give divers time to simply watch the water column rather than actively swim a route, and it is one of the more relaxed, photography-friendly stops in the Fish Rock complex, well suited to less experienced divers rounding out a more demanding first dive elsewhere on the rock.

All Fish Rock sites are boat access only, departing from the boat ramp/marina at South West Rocks (Fish Rock Dive Centre and South West Rocks Dive Centre both operate from the town, 4 New Entrance Road area). The run out to Fish Rock, off Smoky Cape about 2 km offshore, takes roughly 15-25 minutes depending on the vessel and sea state. Boats moor directly on the site — there is a southern mooring near the cave/shark gutters and a northern mooring near The Pinnacle — so there is no surface swim; divers descend the mooring line straight onto the reef.

Double boat dive trips (two dives, roughly 5 hours total) run most days when weather allows; book ahead as Fish Rock is a signature Australian dive and trips fill, especially in the May-November grey nurse season.

Fish Rock sits in open ocean off Smoky Cape with no shelter, so trips are cancelled on any strong onshore swell or wind over about 20 knots; operators want under 1.5-2 m swell to run safely. The site is affected by a north-setting current for roughly 80% of the time, and it can run strong enough to make the cave and Pinnacle undiveable — the best conditions are the day after the current has dropped out or during a brief slack. Visibility is usually 15-30 m and can be exceptional (30-40 m) inside the cave itself; it drops after east coast lows and heavy rain runoff from the Macleay River.

Grey nurse sharks are present year-round but peak May-September, with leopard (zebra) sharks more likely February-April. Dived year-round; winter mornings before the sea breeze are usually calmest.

Exit the cave's shallow entrance onto Larry's Ledge at about 14 m and hold position in the lee of the ledge, scanning the blue for pelagics, before drifting or finning gently to the Outside Shark Gutter near the mooring for the remainder of the dive and an easy ascent.

Fish Rock Dive Centre (South West Rocks) — double boat dives most days, year-round; South West Rocks Dive Centre — daily boat trips to Fish Rock.