finlaysonarmrock2

I have only dove here once before about 14 years ago. Last time, I dove off the tiny islet that is my landmark for this site (it's the only rock sticking above the water at all tides along the East side of Finlayson Arm). I came back here for a dive on July 16, 2023. This time I wanted to dive the point that sticks out just South of the islet. The sidescan image seemed to show a rocky finger sticking out from the point although the image seemed too "messy" to take too seriously.

Below 20' deep, it started to clear. I swam straight out from the point on the South side of a rocky area sticking out from the point. The bottom was sandy with some boulders and small reefs.

I was surprised to be feeling a fairly strong current flowing over the reef. I was diving along the sheltered side of this rocky finger, but when I swam up to its top, the current was probably the strongest I've felt in Saanich Inlet. I could still swim against it so it wasn't too worrying. Many of the rocks were almost completely covered with cup corals. The only place I've seen this many before in Saanich Inlet was at the Repulse Rock (White Lady) dive site.

The bottom continued to drop down deeper. It's hard to remember the exact geography since it was so varied, but the sidescan image seems to be accurate after all. It shows that the "finger" is a convoluted series of steep rocky areas with some sandy channels in between.

At about 100' deep, there was a group of yellowtail rockfish near an old rope with some plumose anemones on it. This part of Finlayson Arm is a Rockfish Conservation Area so fishing is illegal. There was also a feather star, which is the first one I've seen this far South in Saanich Inlet. This area seemed like the tip of the rocky finger. It was a solid-rock point with stepping ledges and steep walls. Visibility was well over 50'.

So far, I didn't see any boot or cloud sponges in these 100-120' depths. I looked over the edge of the walls below me and saw some boot sponges down deeper so I dropped down for a quick look. Many of the rock surfaces were covered with lampshells.

I saw a boulder on a ledge below me with a tiny cloud sponge on it. I was at my maximum depth of 150' during a very low tide and the sponge was still 8' or so below me so it would usually be below 160' deep. On my way back a bit shallower, I saw 2 tiger rockfish and the only semi-adult yelloweye rockfish I've seen in Saanich Inlet (again, this is a Rockfish Conservation Area so it's illegal to kill them). It's too bad all this good stuff is really too deep for me to sensibly make a habit of visiting.

I started my swim back up to the shallows. Above 40' deep, there were some small walls covered with the usual Saanich Inlet lightbulb tunicates. In the Winter, when these tunicates die off, the rocks must seem much more bare.

Maybe I was biased by the good visibility, but I was impressed by this dive site, particularly the deeper end of the rock finger. With my depth-limited time down there, I was left wanting to see more of the area. It's too bad this area is at the limit (and just past it) of reasonable recreational diving.