Kelp forest
down to 12 m
Otter Cove
A shallow, calm Pacific Grove kelp dive (most of it 8-11 m) under one of Monterey Bay's thickest kelp beds, named for its resident sea otter raft.
- Open Water
- Sea otters
Open Water≤18 m
Whalers Cove (Point Lobos)
Dive site in Monterey & Carmel, United States
Point Lobos' calm entry cove: an amber kelp forest where light shafts reveal massive lingcod and mischievous harbor seals tug at fins.
- Usual dive
- 12 m
- Deepest point
- 24 m
- Level
- Open Water
- Best months
- Sep–Nov
- Entry
- From shore
The story
In 1960 Point Lobos became the first underwater reserve in the nation when 750 submerged acres were added to the park. Earlier, from the 1860s to the early 1890s, it was a whaling port.
Source: cadivingnews.com
The dive
A kelp forest dive from the shore. Known for seals.
Who it's for
Open Water≤18 mSource: divessi.com
Recommended minimum: Open Water (PADI Open Water, CMAS/FFESSM N1).
- Access is restricted or uncertain: check with local authorities and operators.
Conditions
- Dive type
- Kelp forest
- Environment
- Open water
- Water
- Sea water
What you might see
- Seals
- Lingcod
Season in Monterey & Carmel
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Good
- Possible
- Closed
- Not documented yet
Best months: Sep–Nov.
Source: padi.comPrices in Monterey & Carmel
- One dive
- €45–269
- Try dive
- €269
- Open Water course
- €824–1182
- Marine park fee
- €18
Prices found at the area's dive centres, not specific to this site. Details and sources
Where is Monterey & Carmel?
The point shows the Monterey & Carmel area, not the exact dive site.
More dives in Monterey & Carmel
Kelp forest
down to 20 m
San Carlos Beach (Breakwater)
A calm, shallow training beach on Cannery Row with nudibranchs, octopus among the anemones and a large colony of California sea lions.
- Open Water
- Sea lions
Kelp forest
down to 18 m
Coral Street
A small Pacific Grove cove inside the Marine Gardens Fish Refuge with rocky ridges, thick summer-fall kelp and water clearer than most Monterey sites.
- Advanced
- Rockfish
Pinnacle
down to 17 m
Eric's Pinnacle
A calm boat dive on a pinnacle from 6 to 17 m in Monterey Bay, often circled by large schools of blue rockfish.
- Open Water
- Rockfish
Kelp forest
down to 12 m
McAbee Beach
A calm, protected sand-beach entry on Cannery Row leading to a giant kelp bed where sea otters are common and old sardine pipes shelter rockfish.
- Open Water
- Sea otters
Kelp forest
down to 40 m
Monastery Beach
Carmel shore dive with a steep boulder wall from 24 to 40 m, Tealia anemones and one of the best invertebrate collections on the West Coast.
- Advanced
- Sea lions
About this page
Values marked “Estimated” come from our original catalogue and are being checked against published sources one by one. Sourced values link to where they come from. Conditions change with the season, the weather and the tide: confirm with a local dive centre before you dive.