Fox Island East Wall is accessed from a very pleasant county park beach and is a good introduction to wall diving and Puget Sound’s currents. After following the winding, but straightforward drive to the park, you’ll end up in a large parking lot at the upper section of the park.
The location of the short, but somewhat steep, dirt trail to the beach is a little obscure, but easily found behind the restrooms to the right. The more prominent cement paths only lead onto the fishing pier, but that allows for a good overlook to check currents and spot the kelp that locates the top of the southern wall.
You should decide to dive either the two ledges to the south side of the pier, or the north ledge on the other side.
The south side is generally more interesting. The first ledge is found by swimming to about 15 feet directly in front of the beach trail end. It bottoms out in around 50 feet of water. More advanced divers may enjoy trying to find the deeper wall by following a ravine down from the first wall to around an 80 foot depth. More ridges of rock are found to the south of it as well.
You’ll find the more northern ledge by swimming out from a large rock on the north border of the public beach; it bottoms out at 35 feet. Please respect private property boundaries.
Use a light to poke among the rocks, ridges and holes for many denizens of southern Puget Sound. You’ll find lots of sculpins; including many Grunt and Buffalo varieties, as well as the larger Red Irish Lords. Crescent and Penpoint Gunnels make their homes there, along with small Heart crabs and clumps of invertebrates like Sponges and Tube Worms. Wolf eels and octopus are also commonly spotted in the holes on the walls.
You must dive this site at slack tide in The Narrows. While suitable for most diver levels, a beginner is advised to go with someone more experienced as a buddy. Currents can be somewhat unpredictable and caution is advised to watch for down and up drafts. Other than the ledges and rocks the slope is smooth. Use the terrain to your advantage and watch your air consumption.
There are many nearby restaurants and stores available, especially near Highway 16, or enjoy all the amenities that nearby Gig Harbor has to offer by continuing across the freeway on Olympic Drive. Tacoma has several dive stores to choose from for equipment or air fills.
