San Carlos Beach

Table of Contents

1 Dive Areas
1.1 Breakwater
1.2 Mid-Reef
1.3 The Big Pipe
1.4 Metridium Fields
1.5 The Barge
2 Shore Information
2.1 Directions from the Bay Area
2.2 Parking
2.3 Bathrooms
2.4 Dive Shops
2.5 Other Notes
3 Map
3.1 Dive Map
3.2 GPS Coordinates
3.3 Google Maps
4 Night Diving
5 Photo Albums
6 Other Information

Also known as Breakwater Beach. This beach is commonly used for teaching scuba classes. It's relatively sheltered from waves and swells, has easy entry via a sand channel on the breakwater side, and has close parking, showers, and bathrooms. This is a marine sanctuary, so look but don't take.

Dive Areas

Breakwater

This rock wall is on the right (south) side of the beach. Lots of nudibranchs, crabs, and fish; sea lion encounters are common farther out.

It's very hard to get lost, even in low visibility; keep the wall on your right headed out, and on your left headed back.

The numbers painted on the side of the concrete part of the breakwater start at 0 by the stairs and are every 100 feet. Swim out to at least the number 6 on the wall before dropping down; the bottom drops off there from 15 fsw down to 25-30 fsw. You can get down to 50 fsw farther out the base of the rock wall.

There is a sand channel between the rock wall and mid-reef where entry is easiest. Don't get too close to the rock wall during entry or exit; waves can push you into the rocks.

The anchor at San Carlos Beach — Big anchor by the wall

There's a big anchor in the sand channel about 15 yards off of number 5 on the wall, which is occasionally visible when the sand shifts after a big storm.

Mid-Reef

This is a collection of rock outcroppings in the center of the beach. Most of them are in 15-30 fsw. Training dives often go here. To the north end, there are runs of small pipes.

You can enter the water either in the sand channel at the south side by the rock wall (easiest), or out from the broken concrete building by the ramp (see the big pipe for more info).

Sebastes auriculatus (Brown Rockfish) — Brown rockfish in the big pipe

The Big Pipe

There is a large (30" diameter) pipe extending out from the old pump house next to the bathrooms on the right edge of the beach. It varies from all the way above the sand to almost totally buried in sand for about 20 yards just past the smaller pipes. There are some nice rock outcroppings to the north of the pipe midway out next to a tilted concrete mooring block; those are in 35 fsw and accessible to less experienced divers.

Enter at the north end of the beach, out from the broken concrete building. There are many small submerged rocks near shore, so this isn't the best entry point if waves are more than waist high (which fortunately doesn't happen very frequently).

If visibility is good (10'+), you can find the pipe from the surface in shallow water and follow it out, then drop down.

If not, here are some recommended sight lines and headings to help finding the pipe:

Line up with Reeside Ave. Use the south edge near shore, and the north edge if far out from shore.
Take a compass reading to the bathroom on the breakwater.
- 120-140 is ok. You will hit the pipe before the concrete block.
- 140-150 not recommended; the pipe is almost buried from 143-147.
- 150-170 is ok, though 170 is very close to the end of the pipe. You will hit the pipe past the concrete block. This is good for the metridium fields (see below).
Drop down and take a 300 heading. You should hit the pipe in 15-20 yards.

Metridium farcimen (White-Plumed Anemone) — Metridium anemones

Metridium Fields

Follow the pipe all the way out to the end (45-50 fsw) and go due north, and you'll hit some rock outcroppings with big white metridium anemones in 50-55 fsw. This is a bit of a swim, and recommended for divers who are better on air consumption or diving larger tanks.

There are more patches of metridium on rocks to the north and east of the first patch.

Directions to/from the big pipe:

When you get to the end of the pipe, take a 345 heading (anywhere 330-0 should hit the metridium fields) for 15 yards.
To get back, take a 180 heading from a rock that looks like a radiator. If you've lost track of that, swim southwest until you hit 35 fsw, then southeast, and you'll run back into the big pipe; that works from anywhere in the metridium fields.
If at any time you're in 60 fsw, you've missed the pipe and/or the fields. Head 180 towards shore. You may end up towards the center of the beach, but at least you won't end up doing a kelp crawl from north of the pipe near shore, or a 400-yard surface swim.

The Barge

This is the remains of an old wooden sardine barge from the cannery days. It lies a couple hundred yards north of the breakwater in 60-65 fsw. There used to be lines running from the barge all the way to the breakwater, but they've been washed out or buried on the breakwater side so are only visible closer to the barge.

This is a long deeper swim, and in the boat channel, so is an advanced dive. It's best visited using a DPV, and definitely bring a DSMB if you have to surface for some reason.

If you do want to go:

Surface swim all the way out to #12 on the breakwater, being careful to watch for fishing lines.
Drop just off the kelp, and swim on a 20 heading for 200 yards. Look for either the barge itself, or the lines leading to it.
If you hit 65', you've gone too far; take a 210 heading back.

If you're on a DPV, it may be easier to find on a 45 heading from #9 on the breakwater; that's a longer 250-yard swim, but hits the lines from the barge at more of an angle so is a bigger target.

Shore Information

Directions from the Bay Area

South on 101 Freeway
Exit 336 - 156 West to Monterey Peninsula
Continue on Highway 1 South to Monterey Peninsula
Exit 402B - Pacific Grove / Del Monte Ave (don't get fooled; there are other Del Monte exits before this one)
Stay on Del Monte as it turns into Lighthouse after the wharf (follow signs towards Cannery Row)
After the tunnel and harbor, veer right onto Foam St.
Turn right on Reeside Ave.
At the end, turn right into the parking lot by the grass. Park towards the breakwater (far) end if you can.

(or just use Google Maps)

Parking

The best spots are the front lot by the grass. If that's full, the upper lot and breakwater lots are also good. Make sure you pay for parking! It's a guaranteed $35 ticket if you don't. Parking is free before 9 am and after 8 pm. I usually just pay $10 for the full-day parking pass. Bring a credit/debit card, or use the mobile app (see signs on the parking machines). The same pass is good on the breakwater and both the lots (but NOT elsewhere in Monterey).

Bathrooms

There are two sets of bathrooms:

On the breakwater/dock. These have quarter-operated hot showers inside, and cold showers outside. Good if you're dripping wet.
On the north side of the beach. These are usually a little cleaner, but please only use these if you're (mostly) dry.

There is one shower by the stairs on the south side of the beach, and another on the back side of the bathrooms on the breakwater.

Dive Shops

There are three dive shops close by, if you need to fill tanks (bring your cert card for nitrox fills) or rent/buy gear.

Monterey Bay Scuba is on the Breakwater itself.
Aquarius is a couple miles back towards the freeway on Del Monte. If you're staying at Lone Oak Lodge or in Seaside, it's an easy stop on the way to the beach. It also tends to be less crowded on the weekends than the shops right on the beach.
Bamboo Reef is about half a mile up Lighthouse Ave.

Other Notes

Backscatter, my favorite photo shop, is just across the street at the start of Cannery Row.

Cannery Row Aquatics, the other close dive shop, is now a closed dive shop as of 2022.

PigWizard, the tasty sausage deli on the breakwater, closed in Feb 2023. If you remember the old sandwich shop in that location owned by the Russian couple, it moved in 2015 to 794 Lighthouse Ave (several blocks down towards the aquarium).

Map

Here's a map with features labeled (click for larger image).

Dive Map

As usual, click for larger image.

Here's an alternate map made by some of my divemasters in training.

GPS Coordinates

N36 36.663 W121 53.766: The Big Pipe, in the shallows out from pumphouse (18 fsw)
N36 36.722 W121 53.680: Concrete block north of the Big Pipe (35 fsw)
N36 36.752 W121 53.627: End of the Big Pipe (47 fsw)
N36 36.759 W121 53.629: Pointy rock at south end of the metridium fields (50 fsw)
N36 36.765 W121 53.627: Metridium Fields (center; 50 fsw)
N36 36.694 W121 53.556: Ballast rockpile (53 fsw)

Google Maps

Night Diving

San Carlos Beach is a great place to night dive. A different set of critters comes out of the rock wall at night, and octopus are common in the sand channel next to the rock wall. Occasionally, a seal will dive with you to hunt by your dive lights.

Some things to know:

The shower area by the grass is well lit at night, and parking is fairly well lit.
Parking permits aren't needed after 8:00 pm.
The bathrooms are locked after sundown. Local restaurants are still open, but obviously you'll need to be changed back into (dry) street clothes. The portapotties by the bathrooms on the breakwater are still unlocked, though.

Presentation to Diver Dan's Dive Club, Jan 2015

Photo Albums

Other Information

Inside Locations: Earth → Eastern Pacific → California → Monterey Area → Monterey
Marine Life: San Carlos Beach Marine Life

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