Lighthouse Sponge Gardens is the reef immediately east of the Lighthouse Wall islet below Ulladulla Lighthouse. Where Lighthouse Wall is a drift, this site is normally dived at anchor, and it has a more broken, complex structure. The reef top is at about 10–12 m. From it, a wall drops past 20 m and is cut by gullies, canyons and overhangs, with cracks and crevices running through the reef so that the depth changes quickly from place to place.

As the name suggests, the fixed life is the attraction: sponges of many colours cover the wall and gully sides, along with sea squirts. Wobbegongs and Port Jackson sharks sit in the crevices, eastern blue devilfish hide under the overhangs, and there are schools of yellowtail, one-spot pullers and silver sweep. McFadyen writes that at times the fish are so numerous they obscure the reef. The shallower reef top has kelp and the usual temperate reef fish.

The dive works for Open Water divers who stay on the reef top and upper wall. Advanced divers can explore the deeper gullies. The site is minutes from the harbour and is a good second dive after Burrill Rocks or the North Bommies, or an option when a longer run is not practical. Visibility is usually around 15 m, good for photographing the sponges. Navigation is simple: head out north-east along the wall, turn at half gas and come back over the top. A torch helps in the overhangs, where the sponge colours and hiding devilfish are easy to miss in natural light.

Boat access only. Charters and private boats launch from the public ramp inside Ulladulla Harbour, reached off the Princes Highway in the centre of Ulladulla (about three hours' drive south of Sydney); there is trailer parking around the harbour and the dive shop is a short walk away. A short run of about five minutes south from the harbour mouth to Warden Head, just east of the islet used for Lighthouse Wall.

Anchor on the reef top at 10–12 m at McFadyen's mark near the lighthouse, where conditions allow. The shop, caravan park and wharf are all close by in town.

Like Lighthouse Wall, the site faces the open sea and is exposed to south-easterly and easterly swell, which surges across the 10–12 m reef top. It is best in westerly or light northerly weather with less than about 1.5 m of swell. It is close to the harbour, so it can be dived on short windows between fronts.

Current is usually slight here but can set south. McFadyen reports visibility normally around 15 m and water from 13 °C in late winter to 21 °C in late summer.

Descend to the reef top at 10–12 m, then head north-east along the wall, dropping in and out of the gullies, canyons and overhangs down to 20 m or so for 20–25 minutes. Turn and return across the reef top, looking into the cracks and canyons, and finish the dive shallow near the anchor.

Dived by Dive Adventures Ulladulla as part of the Warden Head sites when conditions suit, and by visiting club boats; no fixed schedule.