California, United States Dive Sites — Page 2

Continued from the California, United States dive sites guide, which covers seasonality and planning details.

Enterprise Cannery

California · 4.6–19.8 m

A shore dive off the north end of San Carlos Beach at the foot of Reeside Avenue, where the remains of Cannery Row's sardine industry — including a large submerged pipe once used to transfer sardines from boats to the canneries — now serve as a navigation line across a rock-and-sand patch reef. The rocky reef supports one of the thickest remaining giant kelp beds in Monterey, and the pipe leads seaward to rock piles and the famous Metridium Fields of giant plumose anemones at about 65 ft. Protected, easy entry and abundant macro life make it a favorite relaxed dive and training area inside the Ed Ricketts State Marine Conservation Area (no take).

Shore entry

Farnsworth Bank

California · 16.8–39.6 m

Open-ocean seamount about 1.5-2 miles off the backside (southwest) of Catalina Island, with pinnacles rising from 200+ ft to peaks around 55-60 ft. It is famous for dense stands of protected California purple hydrocoral covering the walls, with most diving in the 90-110 ft range. Exposed position means it is only diveable in calm seas, and currents can be strong; the site is protected within the Farnsworth Offshore State Marine Conservation Area.

AdvancedBoat entry

Frolic Wreck

California · 3–18 m

The Frolic was a 97-foot Baltimore-built opium-trade brig that struck the reef north of Point Cabrillo on the night of July 25, 1850, while carrying Chinese silk, porcelain and other Gold Rush cargo to San Francisco; the wreck indirectly triggered the founding of the Mendocino lumber industry. Scattered remains (ballast, fittings, porcelain shards) lie among ridges, boulders and surge channels in Frolic Cove. A historically significant but demanding shore dive for calm days only; the site is protected and nothing may be removed.

AdvancedShore entry

Hermosa Beach Center

California · Up to 18.3 m

Artificial reef built from Quarry Rock, Concrete Shelter, Car Bodies, Streetcar

IntermediateBoat entry

HMCS Yukon

California · 18–32 m

The HMCS Yukon is a 366-foot, six-deck Canadian Mackenzie-class destroyer escort prepared by the San Diego Oceans Foundation and scuttled in July 2000 about two miles off Mission Beach as the centerpiece of Wreck Alley. She sank prematurely the night before her planned sinking and settled on her port side in about 100 feet of water, with the hull starting around 60 feet. Dozens of access holes were cut so a diver is never far from an exit, but the sideways orientation makes navigation disorienting and penetration is for trained wreck divers only. Heavily colonized by white Metridium anemones and strawberry anemones, it is widely considered the signature wreck dive of the US West Coast.

AdvancedBoat entry

Huntington Beach A Center

California · Up to 18.3 m

Artificial reef built from Quarry Rock

IntermediateBoat entry

Huntington Beach B Center

California · Up to 18.3 m

Artificial reef built from Quarry Rock

IntermediateBoat entry

Huntington Beach C Center

California · Up to 18.3 m

Artificial reef built from Quarry Rock

IntermediateBoat entry

Hurricane Bay

California · 3–33.5 m

Hurricane Bay, on Tahoe's west shore about 1.4 miles south of Sunnyside, is a local favorite for deep and night diving: free year-round parking sits just 50 ft from the water and the bottom drops away immediately, so there is virtually no surface swim. The silt-and-sand slope holds large sunken trees from 40-100 ft, the famous 'Alley Cat' sunken sailboat at about 60 ft, and an old truck-chassis boat trailer near 110 ft, with visibility around 70 ft. It is a high-boat-traffic area in summer, so divers should enter and exit close to the beach.

IntermediateShore entry

Ingraham Street Bridge

California · 15–21 m

When San Diego's old Ingraham Street Bridge across Mission Bay was demolished in 1992, its concrete slabs and rebar were sunk in about 60 feet of water in Wreck Alley by the California Department of Fish and Game's Artificial Reef Program. The criss-crossed slabs cover roughly a quarter mile of seafloor, creating dense cover that holds more fish than the nearby ship wrecks, plus abundant lobsters, eels and gorgonians. Its shallower depth makes it the rare Wreck Alley stop accessible to entry-level open-water divers and a favorite night dive.

Boat entry

La Jolla Cove

California · 3–18.3 m

San Diego's classic easy shore dive inside the San Diego-La Jolla Underwater Park, where a protected entry leads to rocky reef, eelgrass, and kelp in roughly 10-45 feet of water. Sea lions, garibaldi, kelp bass, lobster, rays, and occasional giant sea bass make it one of the most reliable marine-life dives in San Diego.

Shore entry

La Jolla Shores Canyon (Vallecitos Point)

California · 7.6–22.9 m

The most popular beach dive in San Diego, where an easy sand entry leads to the rim of the La Jolla submarine canyon. The main wall at Vallecitos Point lies in about 60-70 feet, with deeper sections descending in terraces past 130 feet and beyond recreational limits. Coordinates estimated for the canyon wall just offshore of the named entry point.

IntermediateShore entry

Leo Carrillo State Beach

California · 4.6–15.2 m

Malibu's premier beach dive at the western end of Los Angeles County, with an unusually large kelp forest starting in under 15 ft and substantial reefs, mini-walls and pinnacles extending to about 50 ft. The classic entry is the small cove near lifeguard tower 2, with kelp-covered reef close by on both sides. The reefs are known for an abundance of large octopuses.

Shore entry

Lovers Point

California · 4.6–21.3 m

A Pacific Grove classic off Ocean View Boulevard with three stone-stair entries (Lovers 1, 2 and 3) on the east side of the point. Rocky pinnacles rise 10-20 feet off a 30-40 foot sand bottom beyond the kelp canopy, and skilled divers can navigate around the point into Lovers Cove. Note the seasonal city restriction: May 1 - Sep 30 on Friday-Monday and holidays, diving east of the point is limited (permitted south of the pier only from sunset to 11:30 a.m.).

Shore entry

Malibu Center

California · Up to 18.3 m

Artificial reef built from Quarry Rock, Concrete Shelter, Car Bodies, Streetcar

IntermediateBoat entry

Marina Del Rey 1 Center

California · Up to 19.8 m

Artificial reef built from Quarry Rock

IntermediateBoat entry

Marine Room (Turtle Reef)

California · 0.9–12.2 m

A shallow reef shore dive off the southern end of La Jolla Shores in front of the Marine Room restaurant, a quieter alternative to the main Shores entry. Known for green sea turtles, leopard sharks in the early summer months, and stingrays on the sandy bottom. Coordinates estimated just offshore of the named landmark.

Shore entry

McAbee Beach

California · 3–13.7 m

A small pocket beach on Cannery Row next to the El Torito restaurant, diving over historic cannery debris and a healthy kelp forest. Lengths of old pipe run from near shore out to about 40 feet and serve as navigation aids, and McAbee Pinnacle lies offshore. An easy, protected entry popular for relaxed kelp dives close to downtown Monterey.

Shore entry

Meeks Bay

California · 3–45.7 m

Meeks Bay, on Lake Tahoe's west shore about 5 miles north of Emerald Bay, is one of the lake's most popular and family-friendly shore dives, with easy beach entry from the resort or campground and visibility that can exceed 60 ft. The mostly shallow bay slopes gradually before dropping at about 45 degrees into deep water, with rocky ledges and outcroppings on the south side that shelter fish and abundant crawfish, plus a sunken motorboat at around 90 ft. At ~6,225 ft elevation it is an altitude dive in cold water year-round.

IntermediateShore entry

Metridium Fields

California · 9.1–18.3 m

A field of rocky reefs offshore of Cannery Row covered in giant white plumose anemones (Metridium farcimen), one of Monterey's signature dives. Divers navigate from shore by following a 30-inch steel pipe that runs seaward from the gray pump house to about 40-45 feet, then swim due north roughly 60-100 feet to the main reef. A classic navigation-practice dive over mostly sandy bottom.

IntermediateShore entry

Missile Tower

California · —

Artificial reef built from Missile Platform

Boat entry

Monastery Beach North (North Monastery)

California · 3–39.6 m

The north end of Monastery Beach (San Jose Creek Beach) on Carmel Bay, sitting on the eastern rim of the Carmel submarine canyon — a 200-yard swim can put a diver over 200 feet of water. Granite reefs and pristine kelp forest start close to shore, but the steep, coarse-sand beach produces violently plunging shorebreak and a washing-machine undertow. The beach is infamous for diver and wader fatalities (roughly 20 deaths since 2004, earning the nickname 'Mortuary Beach'); enter and exit only at the extreme north end and only on small-swell days.

AdvancedShore entry

Monastery Beach South (South Monastery)

California · 3–39.6 m

The southern curl of Monastery Beach, where the shoreline hooks so divers can enter almost facing north with slightly more protection than the rest of the beach. Rocky reef and a dense kelp forest border the Carmel submarine canyon, with spectacular walls and deep water close to shore. The same lethal shorebreak and undertow as North Monastery apply — this is an advanced site that has claimed many lives and must only be dived on very calm days.

AdvancedShore entry

New Hope Rock

California · Up to 12 m

A rocky pinnacle reef in the Point Loma kelp beds peaking within about 20 feet of the surface and dropping toward 40-60 feet on the sand. Boat access only, typically launched from Shelter Island or Mission Bay, with kelp forest, caves, and dense fish and invertebrate life.

Boat entry