Lorne Reef sits off the Surf Coast town of Lorne, with reef diving out to around 18 m. The Otway Ranges behind Lorne create a slight wind shadow on north and north-east winds, making the bay one of the more friendly stretches of the otherwise exposed Great Ocean Road coast. Reef holds crayfish, abalone, weedy seadragons, blue devils, kelp canopy and sponge gardens with bommies dropping deeper. Boat access from the Lorne ramp or pier, both manageable on settled days. Best in light north-east winds with swell under a metre and tide near slack. Use the live 7-day wind and swell forecast on this page to plan. Intermediate to advanced — gentler than Torquay or Apollo Bay but still exposed Bass Strait coast, current on tide change, plan around a settled forecast and be aware the swell wraps in around the point on bigger days.
How far you can see underwater — measured in metres. 10m+ is great, 5–10m is workable, under 3m is murk. Driven by wind, swell, and recent rain.
Long-period waves rolling in from the open ocean. Direction matters more than height — a S swell hits Portsea hard, but an E swell rolls past. Period over 12 s = real ocean punch.
Offshore (N or NE) flattens the surface and clears the water. Onshore (SE through SW) chops it up and stirs sand. Calm or light offshore is the magic combo.
This site faces the open ocean. The exposure caption above shows which directions slam in. Anything from the opposite side gets blocked — that's the safest window.
Slack water — the 30 minutes either side of high or low — is calmest and clearest. Mid-tide brings the most flow. Plan to be down at slack, up before the run picks up.
Bass Strait sits 14–16 °C autumn–winter, 17–19 °C summer. Below 16° a 7 mm hooded keeps you warm for 60 min+. Drysuit if you're going long.