About Revisions Radio Island Rock Jetty Beaufort, NC More Info Entry Type: Shore Bottom Composition: Sand Aquatic Life: Might See Something 8/26/2009 7:20 PM

Radio Island rock jetty is a popular shore dive near Beaufort NC. It must be dove at High slack tide. See tide tables for Duke Marine Lab. Very strong current outside of slack tide. Lots of boat traffic overhead, tow a flag and stick to the rocks.
Located on an island between Morehead City and Beaufort, parking is available at a county water access park. A hike up the beach you enter next to a fence that terminates in the water. Catch this site just before slack tide in order to ride along the rock lined channel. Lots of fish life, soft and hard corals, crabs and urchins. Maximum depth approximately 40 fsw. Top of the rocks averages around 15 fsw.
Vis was 5’, the tide was later than normal. Lots of invertebrates were out along the rocks. Banded Tulip Shells, Sea Spiders, Sea Whips, Sea Squirts, Hard Corals, Assorted Tunicates, Blennies, Stone Crab, Oyster Toadfish, Sea Urchins. Dive RI at slack high tide. The beach access area has fresh water showers and restrooms. Places for families to sunbathe and kids to play in the water. For best results, suit up in the parking lot and walk along the water up near the chain link fence. It’s a long walk, but that’s the best spot to dive. Stay on the rocks during the dive. Surface in the shallows.
It was a great dive the last time I splashed here. Time before that I couldn’t read my gauges, but on the 8th of July visibility was 10-15 feet and tons of fish. Current is extremely swift before high tide so if you don’t want to get a good drift, then hit it right at high slack. You must have good nav skills and don’t surface in less than 4 feet of water (at the shore) or you run the high chance of getting hit by a boat. Check the waves in the ocean. That day we had 2 foot waves and vis here was exceptional for a shore dive.
http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/USA_East/North_Carolina/Radio_Island_Jetty/index.htm