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Map of Monastery Beach North (North Monastery)
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Monastery Beach North (North Monastery)

California, United States
AOW suggestedEXTREMELY DANGEROUS SHOREBREAK3–40 m depthShore entry7mm or semi-dry + hood typical

Monastery Beach North (North Monastery) at a glance

Monastery Beach North (North Monastery) is a advanced shore dive site in California, United States with depths of 3–39.6 m (10–130 ft). Typically most favorable Aug · from 3 years of archive data. Divers commonly see Giant kelp, Sea otter, and Vermilion rockfish. Recent reports put the water around 14°C (57°F). Check the latest conditions and entry details before you go.

Marine model · graded 4h ago
1.4 mwaves — about a meter and a half expected

Tap a factor for its source and model point · Forecast 14°C · seasonal avg 14°C

Site hazards: EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SHOREBREAK

Read the full hazards ↓

Dive windows this week

Best: Sun
Sun7:00–21:00
Mon7:00–21:00
Tue7:00–18:00
Wed—
Thu—
Fri7:00–21:00
Sat—

Favorable windowModerate window— no window

First light 5:40 · Sunrise 6:09 · Sunset 20:18

Source: Open-Meteo marine · model point 5.2 km from site · graded 4h ago

Forecast only — always assess conditions on site.

Forecast · NOAA tide model

Tide & slack timing

Loading tide predictions

Recent diver reports

Dated firsthand observations from divers — not current conditions.

No diver reports for this site yet. — one dated observation helps every diver after you.

What Divers Say

Known for: Giant kelp, Sea otter, Vermilion rockfish
Best time: Flat-calm days only, most common in fall; check swell forecasts and abort if waves are dumping on the sand

Based on community reviews and site data. Conditions vary — always verify before diving.

Best months, historically

What conditions have historically been typical at this site, month by month — not a forecast.

  1. Jan8%13°C3.0 m
  2. Feb1%13°C3.2 m
  3. Mar4%12°C3.0 m
  4. Apr19%12°C2.3 m
  5. May14%12°C2.3 m
  6. Jun18%13°C2.1 m
  7. Jul56%14°C1.6 m
  8. Aug71%14°C1.5 m
  9. Sep38%16°C1.9 m
  10. Oct22%16°C2.3 m
  11. Nov12%14°C2.7 m
  12. Dec9%14°C2.8 m

August hastypically had the largest share of favorable days here. Conditions vary year to year — this is historical context, not a forecast.

Based on 3 years of archive data. Bar height shows the share of days each month whose conditions have historically scored favorably.

Marine life recorded at this site, by month

Recorded observations — evidence of past sightings, not a promise of what you’ll encounter.

Species seen here

  • Giant kelpCommonly seen
  • Sea otterCommonly seen
  • Vermilion rockfishCommonly seen
  • LingcodCommonly seen
  • HydrocoralOccasionally seen
  • Harbor sealCommonly seen
  • Wolf eelRarely seen

  • Citharichthys fragilis recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

  • Hermissenda crassicornis recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

  • Loxorhynchus grandis recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

  • Octopus rubescens recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

  • Ophiodon elongatus recorded here Feb (1 record)

    most recent 2015

  • Patiria miniata recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

  • Sebastes chrysomelas recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

  • Tegula brunnea recorded here Oct (1 record)

    most recent 2013

Counts are occurrence records near this site from public biodiversity datasets (GBIF), grouped by calendar month across all sampled years. Sightings vary — past records are context, not a prediction.

Fills & rentals nearby

Facts from OpenStreetMap, corrected by the community — listed by distance only. Details change; confirm with the shop.

  • Monterey Bay Scuba10.0 km

    Report a fix

  • Bamboo Reef Scuba Diving Centers10.3 km

    Mo-Fr 09:00-18:00; Sa-Su 07:00-18:00 hours from OpenStreetMap — call ahead

    Report a fix

Shop facts come from OpenStreetMap and community corrections, shown nearest first. PickADive lists facts and contacts only — no listing is sponsored or ranked.

Site details

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.

reefshorewall

EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SHOREBREAK — steep beach with plunging waves that break directly on the sand, severe undertow, unstable coarse sand underfoot; knee-high waves can knock a geared diver down; multiple fatalities including non-divers; deep water (canyon) very close to shore; never turn your back on the ocean here

Reviews

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