The Cables is one of Breaksea Island's signature dives and, according to Marine Life Network, spectacular. It lies on the northern side of the island beneath the lighthouse, about 100 m offshore, where tall granite bommies rise from about 28 m to within 9 m of the surface. The name comes from the tangled remains of an old communication cable that once linked the lighthouse station to the mainland and still snakes across the bottom between the bommies.

The bommies are the attraction: steep granite columns plastered in large sea fans and plate corals, sponges and ascidians, with gutters and overhangs at their bases. Large blue groper are resident and will follow divers around the site, and fish life is plentiful – harlequin fish, boarfish, western blue devils, queen snapper, sweep and bullseyes around the bommies, with schools of yellowtail kingfish and samson fish passing through the clear water on the northern side. Nudibranchs, cowries and feather stars reward a closer look at the walls.

Because the island shelters it from southerly swell, The Cables is often the outer-island site that goes ahead when the southern and western sides are breaking. That makes it one of the more frequently visited Breaksea sites on South Coast Diving Supplies charters, and it is often paired with Breaksea Boulders or another northern-side dive.

With depths from 9 to 28 m it suits Advanced Open Water divers, though Open Water divers can enjoy the upper parts of the bommies with a guide. It is a highlight for photographers because of the combination of relief, colourful fans and reliable visibility, and for anyone curious about the lighthouse and its history above.

Albany is 418 km (about 4.5 hours) south-east of Perth via Albany Highway. Charter boats and private boats launch either from the Emu Point boat ramp (Emu Point Drive, 7 km north-east of the CBD, with a large trailer car park, toilets and a fish-cleaning station) or from the town ramp beside the Albany Waterfront marina in Princess Royal Harbour, which exits into King George Sound through the harbour entrance past Possession Point. Breaksea Island lies across the entrance of King George Sound, about 9-10 km south-east of Emu Point (20-25 minutes by boat in good conditions, longer from the town ramp).

The Cables is on the northern side of the island directly below the lighthouse, about 100 m offshore; anchor in sand beside the bommies or drop divers with a tender. It is the standard choice when a southerly swell rules out the island's southern sites.

The Cables is protected from southerly swell by the bulk of Breaksea Island, which makes it the island's best option on typical winter and spring days with a south-westerly swell running. It is exposed to north and north-easterly winds, which blow straight across the sound onto the northern shore – summer north-easterly sea breezes can make it choppy by late morning. The crossing from Emu Point is the limiting factor in strong south-westerlies.

Visibility is usually better than inside the sound.

Descend to the sand at 20-25 m beside the tallest bommie, circle its base, then spiral up the bommies toward 10 m looking at the fans and plate corals. Pick up the old cable on the bottom as a navigation line between bommies, and finish with a safety stop on top of a shallow bommie.

South Coast Diving Supplies (Albany) – the town's dive shop; runs scheduled boat dives in King George Sound most weekends and on demand in summer/autumn, and issues HMAS Perth permits; Perth Scuba Albany weekends list 'Cables' among their sites.