If you weren’t already a rockpool lover, the turquoise sandy bottomed pools of Mystery Bay would convert you. The water is gin clear and the rock walls just big enough to shelter you from the swell without blocking too much of the ocean view.

They are some of the most stunning pools on the South Coast, which in turn make them some of the best in NSW.

There are two main pools that offer the perfect mix of deep water for swimming and shallow water for relaxing. In short, whatever your preference, you will find it here.

The walk to the Mystery Bay Rockpools

The stats

Distance: 660m return
Elevation gain: 20m
Difficulty: Easy
Trailhead: 1080 Beach Car Park, Mystery Bay

Summary: The walk to the Mystery Bay Rockpools is easy. There are a couple of stairs to descend to the beach and after that it’s all walking along the sand.

You need to step over a couple of rocks to reach the best rockpool but it’s still very easy.

Safety info: tide & swell

We recommend visiting the Mystery Bay Rockpools at mid tide. You can visit when the water is higher or lower, but mid tide provides water deep enough for swimming (for the most part) and a glorious water colour.

It’s best to visit when the swell is marked as slight. At this time, it’s likely only minor waves will enter the pool, though larger rogue waves are a possibility at any rockpool.

You can see the tide and swell forecast here.

The walk

The walk to the rockpools begins at the car park for 1080 Beach and you’ll take the well maintained stairs down to the sand.

Once at the beach bear left and follow the sand round until you come to a rocky area, 210m from the car park.

The rocks are sharp, so we recommend wearing shoes to explore as it’s painful if you go barefoot. Keep heading left and you will come to the main pool (our favourite) after 120m.

You can climb up onto the rocks to get a better view of where you’re heading to if needed as both pools are obscured from view when you’re on the sand.

They are very close to each other, though moving between the two is easiest by walking back onto the sand to avoid crossing between them on sharp rocks (if you have water shoes this won’t be an issue).

Swimming at the Mystery Bay Rockpools

There are two large rockpools with my favourite being what we have marked “rockpool 1” on the map - but both are special. I’ll start with my favourite, which is spectacular, with baby blue water that’s so clear the pool looks shallow.

It’s not - at mid tide at least - it’s more than deep enough to swim and there are no rocks to obstruct you.

It has a sandy bottom which is always a big win and small rock walls which shelter you from most of the waves and obscure the pool from view of the beach.

It’s a truly breathtaking spot for a swim and feels wonderfully secluded. There is a lot of marine life in the pool so please make sure you wear reef safe sunscreen to protect it.

You won’t need a snorkel to see the fish as the water is so clear. It was also my first time swimming with an octopus which was so exciting (a large one not a blue ring!).

You do need to step over a couple of rocks to enter the pool but it’s easy enough. As mentioned to get to the other pool (rockpool 2) I walked around the back of the rocks as I was barefoot.

There is still a minor rocky section to negotiate but it was very minimal and easy without shoes. Going directly between the two across the rocks is reserved for masochists or those who have water shoes!

The other pool is also a good size, but by the time I got into this one it was two hours before low tide and much of it was shallow.

This is great if you want to sit and relax but didn’t offer much room for swimming. Having said that even on the lower tide the far north side of the pool had a small deep section which was so blue it was like a mini blue hole.

It’s only a small area but the colour and clarity is jaw-dropping, especially as it is incredibly deep (much deeper than my favourite pool).

The deep part of the pool is well protected from the swell whereas the shallower section did have regular incoming waves, on a slight swell none were anything to worry about, but it wasn’t as calm as rockpool 1.

There are additional smaller rockpools located in the same area but none we saw were swimmable.

Keep them wild

Please remember to take all rubbish with you and keep these places wild and pristine - as with anywhere in the outdoors. It’s important to leave them exactly as you found them so they will remain beautiful for generations to come.

Litter tends to breed litter, so if you do spot any and are able to pick it up and dispose of it outside the area, it will go a long way to keeping the area clean.

Please remember to wear reef safe sunscreen to protect the marine life inside the pool.

Parking for the Mystery Bay Rockpools

The trail to the rockpools begins at the car park for 1080 Beach, you can see the exact spot on Google maps here. There is a very short section of unsealed road to reach the car park, but it’s in good condition and suitable for any car at time of writing.

The car park is located just under a 10 minute drive from Narooma and 30 minutes from Bermagui.

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