Steve's Bommie is one of the most celebrated dives on the Great Barrier Reef, a pinnacle rising from 30–35 m to about 5 m off the south end of Ribbon Reef No. 3. It is named after a crew member, and a marble plaque in his memory sits on the bommie at about 22–25 m. Spirit of Freedom, Mike Ball and Dive the World all rate it among the best Ribbon Reef sites, and Mike Ball often dives it twice on a trip because of its biodiversity.

The bommie is covered in Acropora patches, brain and plate corals, pink gorgonian fans and purple elephant-ear sponges, with soft corals on the deeper flanks. Cracks and crevices run through the structure. Schools of big-eye trevally, chevron barracuda, yellow-lined and blue-lined snapper, fusiliers, goatfish and unicornfish swirl around it, and giant trevally, grey and whitetip reef sharks patrol. Wobbegong sharks rest at the base.

The macro life is exceptional. Guides use glow-sticks to mark leafy scorpionfish, stonefish, octopus, peacock mantis shrimp, flame file shells and several species of pipefish, including Schultz's, banded messmate and glittering pipefish. Five species of Australian anemonefish live on the bommie, among them true clownfish, pink, spinecheek and red-and-black. Green and hawksbill turtles are regular, and dwarf minke whales pass in winter.

Nigel Marsh described it for Scuba Diver magazine as packed with marine life, and Mike Ball calls it a photographer's dream. It suits intermediate divers comfortable ascending in open water. If you only get one pinnacle dive on the southern Ribbons, this should be it, and a second visit on the same trip is rarely wasted.

Liveaboard only (or fly-dive via Lizard Island). Mike Ball Dive Expeditions' Spoilsport and Spirit of Freedom depart Cairns (Trinity Wharf / Marlin Marina) in the evening and steam north overnight, roughly 12–14 hours and 200–250 km, to reach the Ribbon Reefs by morning; some itineraries fly Cairns–Lizard Island (about one hour, scenic flight along the coast) and board or disembark there. Trips run 3–7 nights and include Steve's Bommie on almost every Ribbon Reef and Coral Sea itinerary.

Divers enter by giant stride from the dive deck at the mooring and descend the mooring line. The bommie is close to a mooring off the south end of Ribbon Reef No. 3 and is often dived twice on a trip. It is the southernmost of the classic Ribbon Reef sites and is frequently the first or last stop of a Cairns-based trip.

The Ribbon Reefs sit on the edge of the continental shelf and take the full south-east trade wind from April to October. Lagoon-side moorings stay diveable in 20–25 knot SE winds, but reef-front sites and passes need lighter winds; liveaboards shelter behind the reefs overnight. September to December is usually calmest.

Tidal flow through the gaps between the Ribbons is strong on springs, so exposed pinnacles are timed for slack water. December to April brings rain, lower visibility and cyclone risk; box jellyfish and Irukandji are possible November to May. Steve's Bommie is an open-water pinnacle, dived in light to moderate winds at lower tidal flow; minke whales pass Ribbon Reef No. 3 in June–July.

Descend to the base at 25–30 m and find the memorial plaque (about 22–25 m). Circle the base watching for wobbegongs and schooling trevally, then spiral slowly up the bommie, stopping at glow-sticks guides have placed beside macro subjects. Finish on the top at 5 m among the anemonefish for the safety stop.

Mike Ball Dive Expeditions (Spoilsport) – Ribbon Reef and Coral Sea itineraries from Cairns, several departures a month; Spirit of Freedom – 3-, 4- and 7-night trips from Cairns/Lizard Island, weekly. Also on Morris Nautical Ribbon Reef itineraries.