The Needles occupy the sandy arena south of Julian Rocks proper, where a scatter of large bommies and rocky pinnacles rises close enough to the surface to break the swell on a big day, giving the site its name. Depths are moderate, generally 9 to 15 m, but the site has more current running through it than the sheltered Nursery, which is what draws the bigger fish life that makes the Needles one of the most popular sites at the rocks. From December through April this open sandy ground becomes the summer resting ground for Julian Rocks' famous leopard (zebra) shark aggregation — regarded as one of the largest known gatherings of Indo-Pacific leopard sharks anywhere in the world — with the animals lying still on the sand between the bommies where divers can approach slowly for a close, low-impact view.

The same season regularly brings reef manta rays cruising over the pinnacles to feed, along with eagle rays and green and loggerhead turtles year-round. Outside the leopard shark season the Needles are still worth diving for the schooling fish that use the current line here: trevally, kingfish and other pelagics move through the bommies in numbers not seen on the calmer Nursery side. Current is the main variable at the Needles: on a quiet day it is barely noticeable, but a run of the East Australian Current or a big tide can turn this into a genuine drift dive between the pinnacles, and divers should be prepared to use a surface marker buoy if they end up separated from the mooring line.

The open, current-swept ground and lack of overhead shelter mean the Needles is best suited to divers who already have a few dives at the calmer Julian Rocks sites under their belt, but for anyone chasing the leopard sharks, manta rays and the big-animal energy the site is famous for, it is the must-do dive at the rocks in summer.

Both Byron Bay dive operators launch small rigid-hull inflatables directly off the beach: Sundive Byron Bay launches from The Pass at the northern end of Main Beach, and Byron Bay Dive Centre launches from the beach near the Wategos/Clarkes Beach end; check in first at the shopfront in town (Sundive: Shop 8, 9-11 Byron St; Byron Bay Dive Centre: Byron Plaza, 5/90-96 Jonson St), then walk down to the beach for the boat launch briefing. It is a short, often bumpy, beach-launch surf crossing before a 5-10 minute run out to Julian Rocks, so loose gear should be secured. No private-boat ramp serves the rocks directly; private boats normally launch from the Brunswick Heads river mouth or Ballina and run up or down the coast.

Julian Rocks sits fully exposed 2.5 km off Byron Bay, so conditions depend on the swell and wind direction rather than any tide window. Trips are cancelled or moved between the Nursery (sheltered west side) and the more exposed east/south sides depending on swell direction and size; a big easterly or south-easterly swell above about 2 m closes the outer sites but the Nursery can often still run. Visibility is genuinely tide- and current-driven here as warm East Australian Current water and cooler southern water meet around the rocks — it can change from 5 m to 20 m within a single day and even between two dives an hour apart.

Summer (Dec-Mar) is warmest (21-26°C) with the leopard shark aggregation and manta ray sightings; winter (Jun-Aug) is cooler (18-21°C) but usually clearer, with grey nurse sharks and migrating humpback whales visible from the boat. Heavy rain from the Brunswick and Belongil systems can dirty the inshore approach for a day or two but rarely affects the rocks themselves once you are out.

Drop into the sandy arena between the bommies at 9-12 m, drift with any current along the pinnacle line checking the sand for resting leopard sharks and rays, work up onto the shallower bommie tops for schooling fish, and ascend on the mooring or under an SMB if drifting.

Sundive Byron Bay (The Pass) – daily double and triple boat dives; Byron Bay Dive Centre (Wategos/Jonson St) – daily double boat dives, Mon & Thu-Sun.