It has become one of southern Sydney's biggest tourist attractions, and yet visitors are being actively encouraged not to visit the Figure Eight Pools, in the Royal National Park.
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Almost exactly a year after 70 people were injured at the popular spot, the National Parks and Wildlife Service launched a website page this week dedicated to warning people of the dangers of the rock shelf and suggesting alternative locations for visitors.
The website's tag line "don't risk it" sends a clear message to stay away and the page features the hashtag "#notfigure8pools."
The website also has phrases such as "people often get dragged across the rocks by freak waves" and "instead of breaking a limb at Figure 8, try some other beautiful places to snap a selfie" as well as the warning "you think it can't happen to you?".
Because of its remote location the pools are dangerous to access, with a combination of low tide and a small swell required for a safe viewing.
An interactive safety checklist titled "Are you still going to go?" at the bottom of the page takes visitors through all the things they will need to do before going including checking the tides and packing a first aid kit.
The main image for the website shows huge waves breaking across the rock shelf just north of the pools.
Waves are known to crash over the site unexpectedly, even in good conditions.
Last year, on January 24, 70 people were injured by a freak wave, with three having to be airlifted to safety due to the severity of their injuries. There were also a number of other accidents at the site during the year, including two men being airlifted to safety in July.
The NPWS has been issuing daily alerts this week, saying the pools were too dangerous to access due to high tides and big swell. All park trails were also closed during the week because of a total fire ban.
The decision to issue the alerts was made due to "varying weather and dangerous tide conditions" according to a NPWS spokesperson, as extremely high tides and two metre swells hit the coast.
The alerts, first issued last Monday, continued to remain in place each day, with the site being described currently as "high risk."
Despite the warnings, people were still visiting, with several photos of people in the pool uploaded to Facebook and Instagram over the past few days.
One visitor on Thursday reported that there were more than 100 people on the rock platform around lunchtime.
An NPWS spokesperson said that while they were unable to stop people from going to the site, they could actively discourage people.
"Figure Eight Pool is not on park land but is accessed through national park which is why we have undertaken a number of measures such as warning signs to alert people to the potential dangers of accessing this tidal area."
The area is under the control of Crown Lands
Last year, local surf club Burning Palms SLSC was reporting average crowds of about 1000 people at the site on weekends.
Honorary secretary of the club, Peter Pearce, said there had been fewer incidents at the pool this season.
"They've improved the signage and that's been a big help." he said. "It has been a good education campaign."
In 2013-14, local lifesavers administered one minor first aid. Last summer, that had risen to 194.
Anyone visiting the pools is urged by the NPWS to check tides and swells to make sure they can safely enjoy the pools.
"Visitors should use common sense when going near rock shelves and are reminded to heed all alerts and warnings relating to this site."
