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Links to photographs Braemar Avenue in North Saanich, B.C. Breakwater Island near Gabriola Pass, B.C. Deep Cove near Sidney, B.C. Dolphin Beach near Nanoose Bay, B.C. Elliot's Beach Park in Ladysmith, B.C. GB Church near Sidney, B.C. Henderson Point near Sidney, B.C. Madrona Point in Nanaimo, B.C. McKenzie Bight near Victoria, B.C. Neck Point in Nanaimo, B.C. Ogden Point in Victoria, B.C. Porteau Cove Marine Park, B.C. Port Hardy, B.C. Port McNeil, B.C. Rocky Point in Nanaimo, B.C. Saltery Bay near Powell River, B.C. Saxe Point in Esquimalt, B.C. Sidney, B.C. Ten Mile Point in Victoria, B.C. Wall Beach near Nanoose Bay, B.C. Whytecliff Park in Vancouver, B.C. Willis Point near Sidney, B.C. |
Scuba
Diving
Pictures from Neckpoint Park
in Nanaimo, B.C. Canada. Which includes Keel Cove. These are mostly medium quality jpegs. But I have the RAW images as well. Email tjfidler@telus.net Directions to the dive site are located at the bottom of this page. Type of dive: shore dive but migth want to do it as a boat dive as can be a long walk Rating for this dive site: 8/10 for its regular decent water quality, rock walls and abundance of life Parking: 8/10 lots of parking in first parking lot 30+ spaces, only about 7 spaces in second parking lot Boat ramp: none Ease of entry: long walk but trails are flat & wide for the most part. [Wheel chair access: No] Abundance of life: 8/10 Attractions: Easy access to rock walls near shore, and not affected by current usually. But a bit of a walk from main parking lot. Bottom and depth: small rock material for shore, with sand at depth, lots of rock structure and walls Facilities: Portable toilets Hazards/Obstacles: Sometimes there are boats here. But fairly safe for the most part. Sensitivity to tide/current: current can be a problem, but tide is not usually an issue Terrain: solid rock & small rock larger than gravel on shores, rocky & sandy at depth, solid rock walls close to shore |
The following images are thumbnails. If you click on them a larger image will open up and the picture will take up most of your screen. Again these are medium qualifty jpegs. Higher quality images can be purchased directly from me via paypal using my email address tjfidler@telus.net And many of these photos can be found for sale on Cafepress through the Calendar link and Photo CD link .
A few people have already asked me about "What is that pink stuff on the rocks in some of the pictures?" Well, they're usually Pink Rock Crust (aka Encrusting Coralline Algae) or in some cases might even be Encrusting Hydrocorals. They're eaten by a variety of animals - apparently as a good source of calcium.
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| Sign for Neck Point at end of
Morning Side Drive |
Main parking lot - not where you
enter the water |
Once over the hill this is what
you see |
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| Follow trail and go between
rocks here |
Neck Point - Click on thumbnail
to see me. |
Where I normally suit up - I'm
sitting on a rock |
Cephalopods
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Crustaceans
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| Golf Ball Crab [aka Rhinoceros
Crab] ~ about 4 inches [10 cm] wide on the main body of its carapace. Common here. ( January 24, 2006) |
Golf Ball Crab - same animal as
on left. ( January 24,
2006) This image also appears on the ocean-life calendar 2008 for Crustaceans of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v01 |
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| Sharp Nosed Crab ~ about 4
inches [10 cm] along main its shell for a length. Common here. ( December 23, 2006) |
Sharp Nosed Crab ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Sharp Nosed Crab ( January 24, 2006) | Bering Hermit Crab wearing a Leafy Hornmouth shell ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Umbrella Crab or Butterfly Crab
? (May 21, 2006) |
Red Rock Crab - juvenile colours (December 23, 2006) |
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| Puget Sound King Crab (September 24, 2006) | Puget Sound King Crab (September
24, 2006) This photo also appears on the marine-life calendar 2008 for Underwater Life of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v02 |
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| Slender Decorated Crab [covered in "hair"] & Clown Dorid (December 23, 2006) | Juvenile Golfball Crab ~ 5cm across shell (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Heart Crab (June 2, 2007) | Kelp Crab ~ about 3 inches [7.5
cm] wide on main body. True to its name I usually find them on the kelp, seaweeds & seagrasses. Common here.(June 2, 2007) |
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| Heart Crab ~ abut 4 inches [10
cm] wide on main shell. Common here. (Sept 23, 2007) |
Two Heart Crabs. Can you see the baby? (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Kelp Crab (Sept 23, 2007) | Kelp Crab (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Redrock Crab (June 2, 2007) | Widehand Hermit Crab (June 2, 2007) |
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| Small Barnacles and Orange Ascidians [Sea Squirts] (June 2, 2007) | Golf Ball Crab [aka Rhinoceros
Crab] ~ 4 inches [10 cm] across its main shell or carapace [exoskeleton]. Common at this location. (March 22, 2008) |
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| Decorator Crab wearing bits of
brown kelp. Width across legs about 5 inches [12.5 cm]. (March 22, 2008) |
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Fish
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| Not sure of name ( January 24, 2006) | Sculpin but not sure of exact name ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Sculpin - same individual from
previous image ( January 24, 2006) This sculpin actually kept coming closer to me. One of the reaons I'm so fond of sculpins. They seem to be very curious and brave fish. In hindsight, I should have taken even more pictures of this individual. |
Sculpin - female of one above & to right - or so I'm told me ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Ronquil of some kind (?) ( January 24, 2006) | Pacific Sanddab - odd name (May
21,
2006) |
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| Starry Flounder [?] (May 21,
2006) |
2 Sculpins of some kind (May 21,
2006) |
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| Sculpin of some kind ~ about 4 inches [10 cm] long. (May 21, 2006) | Quillback Rockfish (May 21, 2006) This image also appears on the ocean-life calendar 2008 for Underwater Life of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v02 |
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| C-O Sole (September 24, 2006) | Decorated Warbonnet (September
24, 2006) This photo can be found on the ocean-life calendar 2008 for Fishes v01 & Underwater Life v02 of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v01 |
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| Irish Lord (September 24, 2006) This photo also appears on the marine-life calendar 2008 for Underwater Life of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v02 |
Kelp Greenling - female (September 24, 2006) |
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| Northern Spearnose Poacher (September 24, 2006) | Sailfin Sculpin (September 24,
2006) This image can be found on the ocean-life calendar 2008 for Fishes of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v01 |
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| Yelloweye Rockfish (September
24, 2006) |
Grunt Sculpin on a bed of Disc-Top Tunicates (December 23, 2006) |
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| Painted Greenling (December 23, 2006) | English Sole [?] (June 2, 2007) |
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| Longfin Sculpin ~ about an inch and a half [3.75 cm] long - juvenile (June 2, 2007) | Plainfin Midshipman (June 2, 2007) |
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| Longfin Sculpin ~ 5 inches [12.5
cm] long. Not a very good picture. But better than none. Will replace this in the future. Common here. (March 22, 2008) |
Cabezon ~ 14 inches [35 cm]
long. Rare for me to see them here. (March 22, 2008) |
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| Scalyhead Sculpin ~ 5 inches
[12.5 cm] long. Common here. (March 22, 2008) |
Sculpin of some kind. ~ 6 inches [15 cm] long. (March 22, 2008) |
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| I think this is an Eelpout ~ 12
inches [30 cm] long. Rare - first I've ever seen. (March 22, 2008) |
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Mollusks
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| Chiton ~ about 2 inches [5 cm] long. (Sept 23, 2007) | Chiton ~ about 2 inches [5 cm] long. (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Chiton about 3 inches [7.5 cm]
long. If you look closely, and its more apparent on the larger image, this animal seems to be releasing eggs. [?] (Sept 23, 2007) |
Pacific Giant or Gumboot
Chiton. Note the normal sized chiton to the top left. This one was over 12 inches [30 cm] long. (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Rock Scallop ~ almost 12 inches
[30 cm] across. Not that common here. (June 2, 2007) |
Scallop ~ about 5 inches [12.5
cm] across. Not that common here.(March 22, 2008) |
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Nudibranchs [or Sea Slugs] & Snails
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| Young White Lined Dirona ( January 24, 2006) | Giant Dendronotid (May 21, 2006) This photo also appears on the marine-life calendar 2008 for Underwater Life of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v03 |
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| Giant Dendronotid ~ about 16
inches [40 cm] long. Very common here as there are also lots of tube dwelling anemones here. (May 21, 2006) |
Giant Dendronotid (May 21, 2006) This photo also appears on the marine-life calendar 2008 for Mollusks of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v01 |
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| White Lined Dirona (May
21, 2006) |
Red Flabellina - a nudibranch
(September 24, 2006) |
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| Moon Snail (September 24, 2006) This image also appears on the ocean-life calendar 2008 for Mollusks Life of the Pacific Northwest. North America 2008 Calendar v01 |
Clown Dorid ~ about 4 inches [10
cm] long. First I've seen here. (December 23, 2006) |
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| Gold Dirona ~ about 3 inches
[7.5 cm] Common on the keel cove side or entry. (Sept 23, 2007) |
Gold Dirona (June 2, 2007) |
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| Gold Dirona and several Barnacle Eating Dorids (June 2, 2007) | Sea Lemon (June 2, 2007) |
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| Group of Barnacle Eating Dorids.
Each only about an inch [2.5 cm] long. (June 2, 2007) |
Group of Barnacle Eating Dorids. Possibly laying eggs. (June 2, 2007) |
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Sea Anemones ( Cnidarians )
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| Painted Anemone ( January 24, 2006) | Orange Cup Corals ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Orange Cup Corals ( May 21, 2006) | Orange Cup Corals ( May 21, 2006) |
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| Sea Blubber or Lions Mane ? ( May 21, 2006) | Snakelock Anemone (May 21, 2006) |
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| Tube Dwelling Anemones - a
favourtie food of Dendronotids Very common here and they attract the Giant Dendronotids. (May 21, 2006) |
Swimming Anemone ~ 8 inches [20
cm] across. Not that common here. (December 23, 2006) |
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| Buried Aneomone - not so buried though (December 23, 2006) |
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Starfish & Sea Urchins & Sea Cucumbers (Echinoderms)
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| Sunflower Starfish ~ 3 feet [90
cm] across. Very common here. ( January 24, 2006) |
Red Sea Urchin ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Purple Starfish (December 23, 2006) | Learther Star ( January 24, 2006) |
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| Sea Cucumber ~ 2 feet [60 cm]
long. Very common here. ( January 24, 2006) |
Rose Star ~ 6 inches [15 cm] across. (May 21, 2006) |
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| Possibly an Orange Sunstar ~ 8 inches [20 cm] across. (May 21, 2006) | Juvenile Morning Star ~
about 4 inches [10 cm] across. (May 21,
2006) |
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| Feather Star ~ about 12 inches [30 cm] wide. Quite common here. (Dec 23, 2006) | Pale Sea Cucumber and young Giant Dendronotid (May 21, 2006) |
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| Purple Sea Urchin (May 21, 2006) | Orange Sea Cucumber reaching out from a crack in this rock wall (May 21, 2006) |
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| A young Rose Star ~ 5 inches [12.5 cm] across. (May 21, 2006) | A young Sunflower Starfish ~ 2
feet [60 cm] across. (May
21, 2006) |
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| Pale Sea Cucumber (May 21, 2006) |
Sunflower Stars - mating or fighting? (September 24, 2006) |
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| Purple Sea Urchin ~ 12 inches
[30 cm] across the spines. Very common here - usually over a hundred seen during a dive. (September 24, 2006) |
Cushion Star (September 24, 2006) |
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| Cushion Star ~ about 5 inches
[12.5 cm] across. See them sometimes here. (December 23, 2006) |
Spiny Pink Star ~ about 3 feet
[90 cm] across. Very common here. (December 23, 2006) |
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| Brittle Stars ~ about 5 inches
[12.5 cm] across. Very common here. (December 23, 2006) |
Brittle Stars sitting on a Sea Cucumber (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Striped Sunstar - maybe, but usually more distinct (Sept 23, 2007) | Orange Sunstar ~ about 10 inches [25 cm] across. (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Painted Star - seems to be eating something. (Sept 23, 2007) | White Sea Urchin ~ about 5 inches [12.5 cm] across. (Sept 23, 2007) |
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| Cushion Star (June 2, 2007) | Morning Sunstar ~ 3 feet [90 cm]
across. Common here. (June 2, 2007) |
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| Orange Sunstar ~ about 10 inches [25 cm] across. (June 2, 2007) | Painted Star and a Feather Duster Worm below it. (June 2, 2007) |
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| Vermilion Star ~ 6 inches [15
cm] across. Very common here. (June 2, 2007) |
Vermilion Star ~ 6 inches [15
cm] across. Very common here. (June 2, 2007) |
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| A baby Vermilion Star ~ about an
inch [2.5 cm] across. (June 2, 2007) |
Sea Cucumber - typically about 2 feet [60 cm] long. (June 2, 2007) |
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| A baby Purple Starfish. ~ 4
inches [10 cm] across. First I've ever seen so small. The adults are very common here in the shallows. (March 22, 2008) |
A Striped Sunstar with a Tube
Dwelling Anemone to the left of it, and a Pale Seacucumber to the right of it. The sunstar is almost 3 feet [90 cm] across. (March 22, 2008) |
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| Velcro Star ~ 3 feet [90 cm] across. First I've ever seen. (March 22, 2008) | Purple Stars ~ 10 inches [25 cm]
across. Very common in the shallows. (March 22, 2008) |
Back to top.
Worms
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| Orange Feather Dusters ~ 2
inches [5 cm] across. Very common here but not easy to take their photograph. As they tend to pull themselves into their tubes on approach. (June 2, 2007) |
Slime Tube Worm or
Feather-Duster ~ 1.5 inches [3.75 cm] across. Very common here but the usually retreat before you can take a picture. (June 2, 2007) |
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| Marine Worm of some kind. About
5 inches [12.5 cm] long. (March 22, 2008) It was swimming around me, attracted to my lights during this night dive. |
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Miscellaneous
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| Sea Pen and a small shrimp
hiding on it (May 21, 2006) |
Sea Pen - same individual but from side (May 21, 2006) |
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| Close up of the shrimp (May 21, 2006) | Disc-Top Tunicates (December 23, 2006) |
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| Might be Hydrocoral or colonial Tunicates (Sept 23, 2007) | Might be Hydrocoral or colonial
Tunicates (Sept 23,
2007) |
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Neck Point
If coming from the Ferry Terminal make a left onto Brechin Road just as you leave the Departure Bay Ferry Terminal area. Follow it up to the lights, staying on the right side of the road. When you get to the lights you will be making a right onto Estevan Road - which almost immediately becomes Departure Bay road. Follow Departure Bay Road and after you pass the beach at the bottom of the hill, make a left onto Hammond Bay Road. Follow this for a few kilometers then make a right onto Morningside Drive and drive past the school, and you will see the sign for Neck Point. You will need to park in the lower parking lot. The main one shown on the web page.
If you want to print out a map you can user either:
Google Maps : enter Morningside Drive Nanaimo BC Note that it will return Keel Cove Lane.
or
MapQuest : enter Morningside Drive for the Address, Nanaimo for the City, BC for the State/Province
Keel Cove
An alternate dive just a street over from the physical Neck Point is Keel Cove. Part of the same Park really. Follow Hammond Bay Road basicially one street past Morningside Road and then turn right onto McGuffie Road then make a right onto Keel Cove Lane. Just a couple of parking spots in the trees near someones house at the edge of the park. The path down is pretty good. You will see the beach from the parking spots.
If you want to print out a map you can user either:
Google Maps : enter Keel Cove Nanaimo BC Note that it will return Keel Cove Lane.
or
MapQuest: enter Keel Cove for the Address, Nanaimo for the City, BC for the State/Province