Green Wheely Bin Reef is a small, oddly named site at the very eastern extremity of North Head, where the headland meets the open ocean and the tidal stream through the Heads is strongest. The name, coined by its discoverers, refers to nothing more profound than a green wheelie bin that once marked it; the site is identified from the water by the square concrete WWII pillbox on the cliff above. Beneath it a wall drops from 11 m to about 18 m, and a very large boulder standing beside it forms a gully with holes and overhangs.

To the west the reef breaks into many large rocks and boulders with sections of flat rock between, and the outer sections run down to 28 m. An Admiralty-pattern anchor lies on the western side of one of the large rock formations. Kelp covers the shallow reef top; below about 15 m the shaded faces carry sponges and sea tulips in the North Head manner.

The recorded fish life is modest but includes a memorable event: in May 2007 some 60 black-reef leatherjackets were counted in a single aggregation here, far more than usually seen together. Luderick, cuttlefish, sea stars and the reserve's usual wrasses and leatherjackets are the everyday sightings, with wobbegongs under the boulder and pelagics passing the point. The site's exposure sets it apart from the inner North Head dives: tidal currents are sometimes reasonably strong, ocean swell wraps the point, and it is the first to become uncomfortable when the sea gets up.

That also keeps it quiet. It suits Advanced divers with their own boat looking for a North Head site nobody else is on, and works as a drift toward Fairfax Lookout when the tide is running west.

Boat only. Dive Centre Manly loads at Manly Cove beach beside the wharf; Pro Dive Manly and Sydney Dive Charters load at the Little Manly boat ramp (end of Stuart Street, Manly – free parking, set-up benches, toilets at the reserve); Sydney Dive Charters also picks up at Rose Bay public wharf. From Manly the run is 10–15 minutes across North Harbour to the inside of North Head, 20–25 minutes from Rose Bay.

Private boats launch at Little Manly, Roseville Bridge (Middle Harbour, 30 minutes) or Rose Bay. Boats anchor on the reef in 15–20 m or run in toward the cliff and drop the anchor when the bottom appears; there are no moorings, and many abandoned anchors litter the reef. Green Wheely Bin Reef is at the extreme eastern tip of North Head; the square concrete WWII pillbox on top of the cliff is the mark, and the anchor point is 33°49.49'S 151°17.98'E (WGS84).

The inner face of North Head is the most sheltered ocean-quality diving in Sydney. It faces west-south-west into the harbour, so it is protected from the north-east sea breeze and from northerly and easterly swell, and is at its best when a strong north-easter is blowing and every ocean site is rough. It is exposed to southerly swell rolling through the Heads: a big southerly (over 2 m) sends surge along the cliff and dirties the water, though the deeper sponge gardens are usually still diveable.

Tidal current runs along the wall, east on the flood and west on the ebb, strong enough to plan a drift; slack water is easiest for novices. Visibility is 10–15 m on average, 25 m on winter westerlies, and drops after heavy rain when the harbour flushes brown. Ferry, shipping and small-boat traffic through the Heads is constant – ascend on the anchor line or a DSMB close to the cliff.

At the tip of the head the tidal current is 'sometimes reasonably strong' and both ocean swell and the north-easter have more effect than on the inner sites; plan for slack water.

Descend the anchor to the wall foot at 18 m, drop down the wall from 11 m to 18 m and into the gully beside the large boulder, look for the Admiralty anchor on the western side of the big rock, then traverse west through the boulders and flat rock, return east along the reef at 15–20 m and ascend the anchor line.

Not named on operator lists; dived by private boats and clubs, and covered by Manly charters as part of the eastern North Head/Fairfax area when conditions allow.