Dive slate · divesites.com.au · printed 7 Nov 2026
Gunton Island
Esperance & Recherche Archipelago, Western Australia · near Esperance
| Depth | 10–35 m |
|---|---|
| Minimum level | Deep/Advanced + experience |
| Difficulty | Advanced |
| Access | Boat (day trip) |
| Entry | Giant stride or back roll from charter/private boat |
| Current | Mild |
| Visibility | 15-25 m |
| Water | summer 19-21 °C, winter 15-16 °C |
| Suit | 7 mm wetsuit with hood, or drysuit in winter |
| Best season | Late summer to autumn (February-May) for the calmest seas and clearest water |
| Bottom time | 30 min |
| Position | not published |
| Permit | Recherche Archipelago Nature Reserve (no landing without authorisation). |
| Nearest chamber | Fiona Stanley Hospital Hyperbaric Medicine Unit (Murdoch, Perth) – about 720 km; aeromedical evacuation (RFDS) from Esperance Hospital |
| Emergency | 000 · DAN Asia-Pacific diving emergency 1800 088 200 |
Gunton Island
Also known as Gunton Island Recherche
Jagged ridges, bommies and undercuts with schooling samson fish and an unidentified wooden boat wreck.
Near Esperance · Esperance & Recherche Archipelago, Western Australia
- Depth
- 10–35 m
- Minimum level
- Deep/Advanced + experience
- Access
- Boat (day trip)
- Boat ride
- ~60 min
- Water
- 19-21 °C
- Visibility
- 15-25 m
Gunton Island10–35 m · Deep/Advanced + experience
Dive factsDepths, conditions, location & safety
Season
Off-peak nowBest months: January, February, March, April, May, December.
Late summer to autumn (February-May) for the calmest seas and clearest water
- Best months
- Now (November)
Dive facts
- Depth
- 10–35 m
- Typical depth
- 22 m
- Certification
- Deep/Advanced + experience
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Depth tier
- Deep / Advanced + experience (30–40 m)
- Access
- Boat (day trip)
- Dive centre needed
- Recommended
- Shore / independent
- No
- Boat ride
- ~60 min
- Current
- Mild
- Visibility
- 15-25 m
- Water temp (summer)
- 19-21 °C
- Water temp (winter)
- 15-16 °C
- Water
- Temperate
- Bottom time
- 30 min
- Dive traffic
- Rarely dived (private boat/club only)
- Night dive
- No
- Snorkel friendly
- No
Exposure suit
7 mm wetsuit with hood, or drysuit in winter
Location
Recherche Archipelago · Esperance – Recherche Archipelago
No published coordinates. The map above shows the general area, estimated from other documented sites near Esperance.
Primary source: marinelife.org.auMarine park & permits
Recherche Archipelago Nature Reserve (no landing without authorisation).
Nearest recompression chamber
Fiona Stanley Hospital Hyperbaric Medicine Unit (Murdoch, Perth) – about 720 km; aeromedical evacuation (RFDS) from Esperance Hospital
Diving emergency: call 000, then DAN AP 1800 088 200.
Trip planner
Build a trip around Gunton Island →
A day-by-day plan for Esperance & Recherche Archipelago with this site locked in.
This guide is a planning aid. Conditions change daily — confirm with a local dive centre and dive within your training. Data & safety notes.
Dive profile
How this site rates
Scores are computed from the recorded data, not opinions. How?
At a glance
Gunton Island is a island boat dive in Esperance & Recherche Archipelago, WA, 10–35 m, suited to Deep/Advanced + experience divers, about 60 minutes by boat.
Rated advanced because of depth to 35 m, surge on the entry or in the shallows, cold water.
Why dive here
- Jagged ridges, bommies and undercuts with schooling samson fish and an unidentified wooden boat wreck.
- Rarely dived: expect to have the site to yourself, and plan your own logistics.
- Visibility often reaches 15-25 m.
About Gunton Island
Gunton Island is another of the rarely dived islands of the Recherche Archipelago. Marine Life Network describes a jagged, weedy bottom of rocky ridges, bommies, crevices and undercuts in up to 35 m, with fish including samson fish and sweep, and the remains of a wooden boat.
The topography is broken and varied, rewarding divers who take their time to explore the undercuts, where crayfish, harlequin fish and bullseyes shelter. The weed cover – kelp and other brown algae – gives the site a classic southern character, and samson fish often circle divers in numbers.
No public information identifies the wooden boat. The site suits experienced divers on a multi-dive Esperance trip, and like most of the archipelago it is weather-dependent and remote.
Getting there & entry
Island in the Recherche Archipelago with a jagged, weedy bottom of rocky ridges, bommies, crevices and undercuts to 35 m, and the remains of a wooden boat.
Esperance is about 720 km (8 hours) south-east of Perth via the Albany or Great Eastern and Coolgardie-Esperance Highways, with daily flights from Perth. Dive boats and private boats launch from the Bandy Creek Boat Harbour (5 km east of town, with ramps, parking and toilets) or operate from the town waterfront on The Esplanade. Air, nitrox and hire gear are available from Esperance Diving & Fishing on The Esplanade.
Gunton Island is visited by boat on longer archipelago days; operators hold the mark.
Entry: Giant stride or back roll from charter/private boat
Weather, swell & tides
The Recherche Archipelago lies open to the Southern Ocean, and the islands shelter each other only partly. Boat diving needs swell under about 2 m and winds under 15-20 knots; the prevailing south-westerly swell and winter cold fronts cancel many trips from May to September. Summer brings reliable morning calms but strong easterly sea breezes most afternoons.
Dive the sheltered side of Gunton Island in swell under about 1.5 m; the undercuts and crevices surge in larger swell.
Best season: Late summer to autumn (February-May) for the calmest seas and clearest water
How the dive is usually run
Descend to 20-25 m, work along the rocky ridges and bommies checking crevices and undercuts, visit the wooden boat remains if the operator knows their position, and return shallower.
Marine life
- Samson fish
- sweep
- harlequin fish
- bullseyes
- southern rock lobster
- blue groper →
- kelp and brown algae
- sponges
Linked species have their own page listing every site where they are recorded. All marine life →
Training required
The recreational limit. Operators expect a Deep Diver specialty or Advanced plus a log of similar dives, and most recommend nitrox.
Operators often quote Advanced Open Water, but the site reaches 35 m, which is beyond that level's depth limit; Deep/Advanced + experience is the appropriate minimum for the full dive. This is a deep dive: plan gas, bottom time and a safety stop accordingly, and consider nitrox.
Operators' own listing: Advanced Open Water.
Courses that help here
- Enriched Air Nitrox – Longer no-decompression time at 25 m and deeper.
- Deep Diver – The site reaches 35 m.
- Drysuit Diver – Cold water; locals dive dry for much of the year.
Depth tiers: 0–10 m easy · to 18 m Open Water · 18–30 m Advanced (25 m+ is a deep dive) · 30–40 m Deep specialty · 40 m+ technical. All courses
Hazards & warnings
Depth to 35 m; surge; remote; cold water.
Dive centres that go here
Esperance Diving & Fishing (72 The Esplanade, Esperance; operating since 1983) – boat dives in the Recherche Archipelago on demand/weather permitting, minimum numbers apply for long trips – occasional.
Operators recorded for Gunton Island
Other dive centres in Esperance & Recherche Archipelago
Perth Scuba
ProfiledCanning Vale · Perth · WA
One of the most fully documented operations in Western Australia, covering recreational, professional, technical and freediving training alongside substantial equipment facilities.
perthscuba.com · (08) 9455 4448
Woody Island Eco Tours
Named by sitesEsperance · Esperance & Recherche Archipelago · WA
Island eco tours/ferry and camping; not a dive shop.
woodyisland.com.au · 0484 327 580
General area
No position has been published for Gunton Island. The circle shows where it is likely to be, worked out from other documented sites near Esperance. Ask a local operator for the exact site.
Dashed circle: general area (about 51 km), from other documented sites near Esperance. 6 pinned sites. Pins marked approximate on their pages show the general area only; not for navigation.
Gunton Island: frequently asked questions
How deep is Gunton Island?
Gunton Island reaches a maximum depth of 35 m, with the shallowest part at about 10 m; most of the dive is spent around 22 m.
What certification do I need to dive Gunton Island?
Deep/Advanced + experience is the recommended minimum. Operators often quote Advanced Open Water, but the site reaches 35 m, which is beyond that level's depth limit; Deep/Advanced + experience is the appropriate minimum for the full dive. This is a deep dive: plan gas, bottom time and a safety stop accordingly, and consider nitrox. Rated advanced because of depth to 35 m, surge on the entry or in the shallows, cold water.
Can I shore dive Gunton Island?
No, it is reached by boat (about 60 minutes).
When is the best time to dive Gunton Island?
Late summer to autumn (February-May) for the calmest seas and clearest water.
What marine life will I see at Gunton Island?
Regularly recorded: Samson fish, sweep, harlequin fish, bullseyes, southern rock lobster, blue groper, kelp and brown algae, sponges.
What wetsuit do I need at Gunton Island?
7 mm wetsuit with hood, or drysuit in winter.
How cold is the water at Gunton Island?
Typically 19-21 °C in summer and 15-16 °C in winter.
What are the main hazards at Gunton Island?
Depth to 35 m; surge; remote; cold water. See the hazards section above for the full list.
Where is the nearest recompression chamber to Gunton Island?
Fiona Stanley Hospital Hyperbaric Medicine Unit (Murdoch, Perth) – about 720 km; aeromedical evacuation (RFDS) from Esperance Hospital. In an emergency call 000, then DAN Asia-Pacific on 1800 088 200.
Diving in Esperance & Recherche Archipelago
Esperance's Recherche Archipelago has more than 100 granite islands in clear Southern Ocean water: sea lions, fur seals, leafy seadragons, kelp and the Sanko Harvest wreck, the largest diveable wreck in Australia, in 12–40 m. It is spectacular and dived by very few.
Getting there: Eight hours from Perth or a flight to Esperance. Local charters when demand allows; the town beaches and Woody Island have shore diving.
All Esperance & Recherche Archipelago dive sites and a suggested itinerary →
Sources
Data confidence: Low · Being verified: Location unknown; description under 250 words – limited documentation.. Last updated September 2026. Know this site better? How to send a correction
Nearby dive sites
More wrecks in Western Australia
Explore more
This region
Similar dives
Marine life