YCW Beach – the initials come from the Young Christian Workers camp that once stood above it – is a 400 m pocket of sand backed by basalt headlands on Phillip Island's south coast, next door to Smiths Beach. The reef runs out from the eastern end under Smiths Point and is the reason to dive here. Scuba Doctor describes weed-covered shallows containing swim-throughs, crevices and overhangs, dropping to about 14 m on the outer edge.

The basalt has weathered into blocks and low walls, and the gaps between them form short tunnels and gutters that can be threaded at 5–10 m, with kelp and coralline algae on top and encrusting sponge, ascidians and zoanthids underneath. The named fish are a good indication of the habitat: blue devils in the darker crevices, Port Jackson sharks and draughtboard sharks resting in the gutters, boarfish and old wives under the overhangs, with wrasse, morwong and sweep over the reef. Crayfish and abalone occur, and spearfishing is practised, so expect the occasional spearo on the outer reef.

The character of the dive is similar to Smiths Beach across the point, but YCW is slightly more enclosed at its eastern corner and the entry from the steps is direct. Both sites can be combined: divers sometimes enter at YCW, work round Smiths Point and exit at Smiths Beach with a car shuffle, although that puts the most exposed section in the middle of the dive. The site's caution is current.

Water moving along this coast can pick up unexpectedly, and the listing warns that conditions may deteriorate quickly, so this is an Open Water dive in benign conditions but one that rewards a conservative plan. The facilities at the Beachcomber Avenue car park – change rooms, toilets and accessible washrooms – make it one of the easier south-coast sites to organise.

From the Phillip Island Tourist Road turn into Smiths Beach Road and then right into Beachcomber Avenue, which ends at a large car park on the 20 m bluffs above YCW Beach (about 10 km from the bridge, 2 hours from Melbourne). A flight of steps leads to the sand; the carry is 100–200 m including the steps. The best entry and exit is straight out from the steps at the eastern end of the beach, close under Smiths Point, where the reef begins.

South-facing and open to Bass Strait; dive only with an offshore northerly wind and a swell under about 1 m, at high tide for clearance over the inshore rock. Scuba Doctor specifically warns that currents can develop and conditions may deteriorate quickly, so a sea breeze or a rising swell mid-dive should prompt an early exit. South-westerly swell produces surf and rips along the beach.

Early morning is best. Diveable year-round on suitable days; autumn is most reliable.

Enter below the steps and swim out along the base of Smiths Point, following the reef seaward from the weedy shallows through the swim-throughs and crevices to the outer ledges at 10–14 m. Turn at half gas or if current builds, and return along the same reef edge at a shallower level, exiting onto the sand below the steps. Do not drift west along the open beach where rips form.

No dive shop or dedicated dive charter is based on Phillip Island. Sites are dived by Melbourne clubs (VSAG, Melbourne University Underwater Club, Frankston/Peninsula clubs) and private boats launched at Newhaven or Rhyll; Mornington Peninsula shops (Dive Victoria Group, Portsea; The Scuba Doctor, Rye) run occasional Phillip Island days. Ocean Adventures Phillip Island (Cowes) runs seal-snorkel tours only.