Monastery Beach North (North Monastery)

California, United States

Depth10–130 ft (3–39.6 m)

AccessShore

Cert LevelAdvanced Open Water with surf-entry experience; many shops treat it as an advanced-only site

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Flat-calm days only, most common in fall; check swell forecasts and abort if waves are dumping on the sand

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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.

Quick Facts

Depth Range3m – 39.6m

CertificationAdvanced Open Water with surf-entry experience; many shops treat it as an advanced-only site

GearDrysuit or 7mm, low-drag rig, fins donned at the waterline, surface marker; nothing loose that can be torn off in the break

HazardsEXTREMELY 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

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