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Breakwater
(aka San Carlos Beach, Coast Guard Pier or Coast Guard Jetties)
- San Carlos Beach
- Hidden Beach
- Metridium Field
Location:
Breakwater / San Carlos Beach / Coastguard Pier / Ed Rickett's
Marine Sanctuary
Dive Level:
Beginner to
Intermediate
General Overview:
Monterey Breakwater (aka San Carlos Beach aka Coast Guard Pier)
is one of the most popular dive destinations in Northern California.
It's one of the most protected beaches, and is open more days of the
year than virtually any other beach making it the natural
destination for most open water classes.
Site Amenities:
There are public restrooms at each
end of the beach. The larger of the two (the northern one) have
shower facilities. In addition, theres a shower for rinsing off at
the top of the primary beach stairs. There are two dive stores
within easy walking distance from the site Aquarius (on the pier)
and Monterey Bay Dive Center (at the west end of the grassy area).
There are plenty of grass lawns and picnic tables for having a nice
lunch by the ocean. And finally, there's a deli at the end of
breakwater parking lot, where you can grab a snack or a serious
breakfast/lunch.
Entry/Exits:
There are three primary entry and exit points the Breakwater wall
and the North (left) end of the beach at Breakwater itself, and then
just to the left of Monterey Bay Inn for Hidden Beach, (Hole in the
Wall). The first two provide easy access to any of the dive sites
contained within Breakwater.
Entry One
Breakwater wall. This entry
point provides easy access to the wall (you can follow it all the
way out to the end, around 65). Nice easy dive watch out for
occasional surge. Also accessible are the kelp forest and Horseshoe
Reef.
Entry Two North (left)
end. This entry point
provides easy access to a dive along old cannery pipes. Swim out
about 10 yards, and then line up with the center of the restrooms on
the beach. Drop down about 10-12 feet to the bottom, where you will
see a small pipe (about 6" thick). Swim away from the beach along
this pipe for about 20 yards. Take a north heading, and swim about
10 yards to a much larger pipe. Follow this pipe out to its end. The
pipe goes to around 50 at its end point, and traverses several
different types of underwater terrain, including a kelp forest and
large field of tube anemones of wild colors. You can also visit
Hidden
Beach (Hole
In the Wall) (below) from this entry point.
Another dive from this point is the
Medtridium Fields
(intermediate only!) Follow the large pipe (above) to its end. Take
a 330 degree heading, and swim for about 70. The bottom will slope
down to around 65, and a field of Medtridiums will come into view
a
spectacular sight! Note: watch your air consumption, and do a
reciprocal heading to get back to the large pipe. Take that back to
shore. Its a LOOOOOONNNGGG surface swim back divers beware!
Hidden Beach
(Hole in the Wall) Entry.
Just to the left of the Monterey Bay Inn lies a set of stairs that
go to a small beach. This is a shallow dive of 15-35, with lots of
kelp and rock bottom w/sand on the outside of the site.
Notable Sights:
Along the Wall, there is a fairly large field of sand dollars.
Towards the end of the wall (not for novice divers!) theres a large
group of sea lions who tend to visit divers. At around 30, there's
a kelp forest that is home to an old engine. At 40', theres a sharp
drop-off of about 10. Following that perpendicular to the wall
about 50', youll run into a series of old mooring blocks used by
the sardine fishing fleet (see pipes below).
Along the North (left) end, the cannery pipes are a rather
interesting piece of history, not to mention great diving.
Insider Info:
Get there before 7:15am on weekends to get reasonable parking. Make
SURE that you feed the parking meter prior to 9am. After 9, the
"meter maids" provide Monterey's primary revenue (or so it seems)
via parking tickets they show no mercy.
How to Get There:
Via Hwy 1
Take Hwy 1 going South. Once you hit Monterey, take the
SECOND
Del Monte Ave Exit (the one that says "To Monterey and Pacific
Grove". Stay on Del Monte Ave until you go through the tunnel.
Immediately after the tunnel, get in the right lane. Take the next
right and an immediate right again (at the sign that says "to San
Carlos Beach").
Via 101 or 280
Take I-280 to Hwy 85 S. to Hwy 101 S. (or just hop on 101 to begin
with). In Prunedale, take 156 W. to Hwy 1 S. to Monterey. Take the
SECOND Del Monte Ave Exit (the one that says "To
Monterey and Pacific Grove". Stay on Del Monte Ave until you go
through the tunnel. Immediately after the tunnel, get in the right
lane. Take the next right and an immediate right again (at the sign
that says "to San Carlos Beach").
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