The Pinnacle sits off the north-eastern corner of Fish Rock as a genuine twin-peaked submerged mountain, its shoulders dropping from 30-35 m on the sand to two summits at around six and eight metres — shallow enough that the swell can be felt on top on a big day. A sand gutter separates it from the main island, and its southern flank funnels current straight into Colorado Pass, which is why the two sites are usually dived as one long circuit on flat, low-current days. For roughly 80% of the year Fish Rock runs a current from the north strong enough to make the Pinnacle a hard, sometimes dangerous dive; the reward for waiting for a calm window, or diving it as a drift, is one of the richest single dives on the NSW coast.

Grey nurse sharks — often twenty to thirty of them — hold in the sand gutter beneath the peaks, and a shallow ledge at about sixteen metres, nicknamed the Turtle Cradle, is a reliable resting spot for green and loggerhead turtles. The structure itself is worth the dive without the animals: the eastern face falls away as a sheer wall from the surface, plastered with sponges and gorgonians, while the western and southern slopes are broken into boulders, gutters and low ridges that hold huge crayfish and ornate and spotted wobbegongs, some of the biggest seen anywhere at Fish Rock. Bannerfish and southern fusiliers school in loose clouds over the top, giant Queensland gropers cruise the deeper margins, and in the warmer months hammerhead sharks and Spanish mackerel have been recorded passing through on the current lines.

This is an advanced dive: the depth range, the exposure to current and the distance from the mooring mean it suits confident, experienced divers with good air consumption rather than a first Fish Rock outing, but on the right day it is arguably the pick of all the Fish Rock sites.

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.

Descend the northern mooring onto the top of the Pinnacle at 6-8 m, drop down its southern or western slope to the sand gutter at 25-30 m, then cross toward Colorado Pass or the shallow rock area depending on current. Work along the eastern wall, watching for grey nurse sharks and pelagics off the drop-off, then return west across the top of the Pinnacle to ascend on the mooring.

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.