Trip Report: Monterey & Carmel by the Sea, March 2019

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Ironborn

Contributor
Messages
390
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409
Location
Miami, Florida
# of dives
500 - 999
Summary

I enjoyed my five-day diving trip to Monterey and neighboring Carmel by the Sea in March 2019. This trip was my first exposure to both cold water diving and North America's Pacific coast. I am posting this detailed trip report as a resource for other out-of-state divers and other new cold water divers and also as an outsider's perspective for local California divers on this sub-forum.

The quality of the private guides and other services that I received from Aquarius Dive Shop exceeded my expectations and facilitated my first experience with this unfamiliar environment and the greater difficulty of cold water shore diving. Above-average diving conditions (by local standards) for most of that week further enhanced the experience. I confirmed my suspicions that my tolerance for cold is high, but I underestimated the awkwardness of unfamiliar cold water gear and indirect effects of the cold. I found the local animals, particularly the smaller ones, more interesting than the kelp coverage, which may have been thin for seasonal reasons. I agree with what appears to be a common view that the Carmel dive sites are richer and more rewarding than those in Monterey. I am now curious about diving elsewhere along the Pacific coast of North America, including nearby Big Sur.

Why I Went There

I had long been curious about cold water diving, with a desire to expand my horizons beyond the warm waters of the Caribbean and Southeast Asia that I have already experienced. I had also been interested in exploring environments other than the coral reefs that are the usual focus of much warm water diving, such as wrecks, caverns, and muck dive sites. I had also come to suspect that my tolerance for cold might be above-average by comparing notes with other divers in tropical destinations, and I thought that perhaps this tolerance would enhance my ability to enjoy cold water diving.

I had considered diving locally in the tri-state area, but the great depth of the many of the wrecks that seem to be the typical fare around here and other conditions left me hesitant to do my first cold water dives locally. I knew that the Pacific coast of North America is a richer cold water environment in its marine life and thus considered my options there instead. I had heard about Monterey's underwater environment even before I became a diver (e.g. the Aquarium), so name recognition was a factor. I also liked the predominance of shallow shore diving in Monterey, as I had acquired a taste for shore diving on Bonaire, and I thought that perhaps privately guided shore diving would be a more comfortable introduction to an unfamiliar environment and unfamiliar gear. Monterey is also roughly in the middle of the Pacific North American destinations that I considered, neither too far north nor too far south.

I understand that many divers that visit Monterey are local to Northern or Central California and come on weekends, especially in the summer. Coming all the way from New York, I felt that I needed a longer trip in order to justify the travel time and costs. I also wanted a longer trip in order to make the most of the learning curve in an unfamiliar environment with unfamiliar gear, which turned out to be a good decision, as it took me more than a few dives to adjust. I would normally do a Saturday-to-Saturday trip in the Caribbean, with six diving days. I did only five days on this trip because of the greater rigor of cold water diving and in order to dive only on weekdays and thus avoid crowds. I also went in March in order to avoid summer crowds and plankton blooms and winter swells. This timing worked out well, as there were hardly any other divers at any sites other than Point Lobos, waves were low by local standards, and I experienced none of the “miso soup” visibility that others mention here.

Aquarius Dive Shop

I contacted the three main Monterey dive shops – Bamboo Reef, Breakwater, and Aquarius. The result was that Aquarius was the clear choice for me, and in retrospect it worked out well. Aquarius was the most prompt in responding, which I have found is usually a good sign. They were the most accommodating and flexible in what they were willing to offer, including private guides, three dives per day, and Nitrox in high-pressure steel 100 tanks. I wanted a private guide primarily because of the unfamiliar environment and gear and also because I have found that private guides usually yield more enjoyable experiences (which they did in this case). I wanted three dives per day, rather than the usual two, in order to justify the travel time and costs and in order to make the best of the learning curve. I would normally do four or even five dives per day in tropical environments, if and when possible, but I went for “only” three due to the greater rigor of cold water diving. In retrospect, three dives was just right for me, as I was exhausted at the end of the day and probably could not have done any more. I wanted Nitrox in steel tanks in order to reduce the amount of lead that I would need to carry, because of the heightened DCS risk when one is cold, and because I had heard that cold increases some divers' air consumption (although it did not appear to do so in my case). More generally, I got the best vibe from Aquarius and sensed that I would have good chemistry with them, which turned out to be true.

Aquarius provided quality service. Tank fills were always complete and had what may have been the most consistently accurate Nitrox blends that I have ever received. The guides demonstrated thorough knowledge of the local dive sites and the ways in which weather conditions might make them unsuitable for diving or otherwise affect them. They could even recognize grains of sand from a certain dive site by their size and consistency. They assisted me with the initially unfamiliar and cumbersome gear and occasionally tricky shore entries and provided tips that made me more competent and self-sufficient by the end of the week. They demonstrated significant stamina and endurance for three cold water shore dives a day, with most bottom times longer than an hour and a few as long as 70 or 80 minutes. They demonstrated thorough knowledge of the local marine life and solid wildlife spotting skills. They had rinse tanks for my gear, where I could leave it for them to hang up at the end of the day. They fixed one of my BCD weight pockets when grains of sand prevented it from locking into place. I would dive with Aquarius again if and when I were to return to Monterey.

Where We Went

We went to the Breakwater on the first day in order to familiarize myself with the environment and the gear at a relatively easy site. I would say that the Breakwater structure itself made for a more interesting dive than I would have expected from a site that is known primarily for training. The Breakwater's rocks provided many hiding places for animals and structure for kelp to anchor itself.

We went to Monastery Beach on the second day in order to ensure that we seized the opportunity to dive that highly regarded but more weather-sensitive site on a day when conditions were unusually good for it. It was clearly one of the more interesting sites and yielded the most remarkable animal encounters and photo opportunities. It was also the hardest shore entry and exit of the trip, even on an unusually good day, but it might have been easier if we had gone later in the week, after I had adjusted. The unusually large grains of sand at this site have a remarkable tendency to get stuck in gear and cause one to sink into them more than usual, leading one of the guides to call them “monster berries.” Their greater size may also cause them to settle more quickly and thus give this site better visibility.

We went to Lovers' Point on the third day, when conditions were the least favorable. It was notably easier, even on an otherwise rough day, but it was also probably the least interesting site, possibly due to the overpopulation of urchins. It nonetheless had a decent selection of interesting animals here and there, including a monkeyface prickleback, which the guide described as an unusual sight.

We went to Point Lobos on the fourth day, when conditions improved. We did not have an advance reservation but just showed up, and fortunately they had spaces for us, as it is less busy during the week. Point Lobos was also clearly one of the more interesting sites, and I would say that its reputation is well-deserved. It was probably more interesting for the overall environment, rather than individual animal encounters, and was clearly the richest example of kelp forest that I saw. We also explored a pair of small caverns at the outer edge of the sheltered cove. The boat ramp made the shore entry very easy, but the density of the kelp in the cove was occasionally a bit of hassle during surface swims.

We went to McAbee Beach on the last day. This site was similar to Lovers' Point but had denser kelp forest and more interesting animals and topography, such as its small pinnacle.

(to be continued)
 
What We Saw

I had never encountered any warm-blooded animals in more than 270 warm water dives and thus looked forward to seeing marine mammals and diving birds in Monterey. Sea lions came to check us out briefly underwater at the Breakwater and McAbee Beach. Harbor seals came to check us out briefly during surface swims at Monastery Beach and Point Lobos. A sea otter also checked us out during a surface swim at the Breakwater. We also saw cormorants diving for food at the Breakwater and McAbee Beach. I did not get any presentable photos of these animals because they moved too fast.

What turned out to be even more interesting to me was what I can only describe as the generally “prehistoric” feel of the environment, with the predominance of small(er) invertebrates among the mobile animals, such as mollusks, echinoderms, crustaceans, and anemones. I wondered if it was anything what the ocean must have been like hundreds of millions of years ago, before vertebrates became more prominent and life began to migrate onto land. I like to see new and unfamiliar animals, and I had never even seen photos of some of these animals. I also like to see alien-looking animals and have a special interest in macro photography, so this aspect of the environment was rewarding for me.

Paul on Instagram: “Crab at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Chiton at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Metridium anemone at the Breakwater, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #scubadiving #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “A spot prawn at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Sea anemone, Point Lobos State Natural Preserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Strawberry anemones growing on barnacles, Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

With that said, the overpopulation of urchins appeared to have a significant impact on the environment, reducing the kelp coverage and the overall richness. This phenomenon was most evident at Lovers' Point and least evident at Point Lobos. A guide explained that this problem had become worse in recent years, as the exploding number of urchins had begun to exhaust their own food supply, leaving them malnourished and discouraging their normal predators from eating them due to low nutritional value.

We did see quite a few medium-sized fish, such as lingcods, rockfishes, and cabezons, but it struck me that fish seemed to constitute a much smaller proportion of the local biomass than one would see in tropical coral reefs. I am curious if this difference is typical of or natural for such environments or due to fishing in general and spearfishing by divers in particular. I noticed that most of the fish here were significantly more wary of divers in general and my camera lighting in particular than those that I have seen in tropical waters. I did nonetheless manage to get some decent close-up portraits of lingcods, rockfishes, and cabezons, whose ambush postures reminded me of scorpionfishes and frogfishes from warm waters. The California sheepheads, however, not only displayed no fear of divers but actually followed us around, reminding me of the similar behavior of groupers in tropical environments.

Paul on Instagram: “Lingcod at the Breakwater, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Lingcod at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Lingcod at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Cabezon at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #scubadiving #diving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “A cabezon at McAbee Beach, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Cabezon at the Breakwater, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Rockfish at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. The diver in the background of the second…”

Paul on Instagram: “Rockfish at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Rockfish at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “California sheephead at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba…”

Despite the above observations, one of the most “prehistoric” and otherwise remarkable animals that we encountered was a fish that seemed totally oblivious to our presence – the below ratfish/chimaera that we encountered at the north end of Monastery Beach. As I understand it, these ancient relatives of sharks normally live beyond diving depths, but divers occasionally encounter them or other deep water animals at Monastery Beach due to its proximity to a deep underwater canyon. We did not see any actual sharks, but we did see a few of the below shark eggs among the rocks of the Breakwater.

Paul on Instagram: “Chimaera at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. This ancient relative of sharks and rays…”

Paul on Instagram: “A shark egg at the Breakwater, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Our other most noteworthy animal encounter was at the south end of Monastery Beach, where the guide found this baby giant Pacific octopus hiding inside an abalone shell. The guide had asked me if there was anything specific that I wanted to see, and I mentioned the giant Pacific octopus. Well, he found one, although it had not yet become giant. It was surprisingly photo-friendly. We learned from this experience that it is worth looking inside abalone shells for animals hiding in or under them.

Paul on Instagram: “A juvenile giant Pacific octopus at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. @nick_groshark…”

Paul on Instagram: “A juvenile giant Pacific octopus at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. @nick_groshark…”

Paul on Instagram: “A photograph of me photographing the juvenile giant Pacific octopus from my previous two posts at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea,…”

Paul on Instagram: “A cabezon hiding inside an abalone shell at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with…”

(to be continued)
 
Nudibranchs were quite common, but the vast majority of them were sea lemons, also known as Monterey dorids. More interesting to me and larger than I expected were the sea hares, which eat nudibranchs. We saw more than a few sea hares at Point Lobos.

Paul on Instagram: “Sea lemon nudibranch at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba…”

Paul on Instagram: “Sea lemon nudibranch at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Sea lemon at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “A pair of Hopkin’s rose nudibranchs at McAbee Beach, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Nudibranch at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Nudibranch at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “A pair of rainbow nudibranchs mating at McAbee Beach, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Sea hare at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Sea hare at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Also quite common were decorator crabs, which decorate themselves with kelp, red algae, and occasionally smaller animals. I saw anemones in the process of swallowing some of them.

Paul on Instagram: “A pair of decorator crabs fighting at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Decorator crab at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #coldwaterdiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Decorator crab at Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving #photography…”

Paul on Instagram: “Decorator crab at Monastery Beach, Carmel by the Sea, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving…”

Paul on Instagram: “Sea anemone eating a decorator crab, Lovers’ Point, Monterey, California. From a dive with @aquariusdiveshop. #scuba #diving #scubadiving…”

Thoughts on Cold Water Shore Diving

I had read and heard many times that cold water diving is significantly harder than warm water diving. In retrospect, I would say more precisely that donning and using cold water gear and entering and exiting the water while wearing it, especially on shore dives, were much harder than I had anticipated. Now I understand why seals and sea lions may become anxious if one approaches them on the beach; I think that now I can almost relate to how awkward they must feel on land. The actual underwater experience, however, did not strike me as significantly more difficult, except in a few minor ways. My new 8/7mm semi-dry suit with an integrated hood felt awkward at first, as if I were wearing whale blubber. I eventually adjusted to it, however, and it certainly excelled at its primary function of keeping me warm. More problematic were gloves, which I had never used before and lowered my dexterity and impeded my photography. I had adjusted to them somewhat by the end of the trip, but my hands still felt awkward. It is unclear to me if I just bought a pair of unsuitable gloves or if I will simply have to cope with reduced dexterity while wearing gloves. I retained my 3mm warm water boots and just added 2.5mm dry suit socks, which were more than enough to keep my feet warm.

The amount of ballast that I had to carry in order to achieve neutral buoyancy with all that exposure protection was the single most difficult factor, but I only felt the impact significantly during the shore entries and exits. Even though conditions were calm, there was often a long walk between the car, where we geared up, and the water. Exiting the water was even harder due to a phenomenon that one of the guides called “jello legs.” The cold water tightens one's muscles, which often refused to cooperate when I tried to stand up. Now I understand why some cold water dive boats have elevators on them. In any event, these experiences led me to wonder if and how much easier cold water boat dives might be in comparison to cold water shore dives. I have long liked shore diving, and now I like cold water diving too, but I am uncertain if and how much I should combine those two in the future.

My main concern had been my ability to withstand the sensation of cold, which turned out to be the least of my problems. I only felt uncomfortably cold once, in the last ten minutes of a third dive of the day, which was longer than most others. I felt the urge to end a dive because of the sensation of cold only once, and it did not appear to have a major impact on my air consumption. Other divers that I have met on warm water dive trips wondered why I felt cold so rarely or never at all. Perhaps I was a polar bear in a previous life, but I also think that my semi-dry suit served me well. I actually had a bigger problem resisting the occasionally overwhelming urge to urinate in it, which I understand is not a good idea. I also had more of a problem with the tightness of my muscles and the associated sense of fatigue from the exposure to cold water at the end of the day, but I still did not feel cold per se.

For Further Discussion

I intended this trip as a test to see if I would like cold water diving and the Pacific coast of North America. I liked them both and would like to do more of both in the future. I will probably go farther to the north (e.g. British Columbia and Puget Sound) or the south (e.g. the Channel Islands, San Diego, and Baja California) for the most part, but I am also curious about nearby Big Sur. One of the guides mentioned that he does guided shore dives in Big Sur, using a rope to climb down and up cliffs in cold water gear. I decided to pass on that opportunity, but I also understand that the liveaboard operator Truth Aquatics occasionally runs liveaboard trips to Big Sur. I am curious as to what the underwater environment and diving conditions there are like. The more remote and exposed sites of Carmel were noticeably richer and more pristine than those of Monterey, so I wonder if Big Sur dive sites are even richer and more pristine – but also more difficult to dive – for the same or similar reasons.

Beyond that, I have a few questions on points of interest to me and potentially to others:
  • Do other cold water Pacific North American destinations, such as British Columbia or Puget Sound, naturally have similarly lower proportions of fish, or was I seeing the results of overfishing?

  • Are cold water fish naturally more wary of divers and light-sensitive than their warm water counterparts, or was the greater wariness that I observed the result of spearfishing?

  • What if anything can we do about the overpopulation of urchins?

  • Have you found that boat dives makes cold water diving notably easier than shore diving?

  • Can one install a pee valve or something similar in a semi-dry suit?
 
Very nice report! It sounds like you truly enjoyed yourself and you hit all the right dive sites, especially Point Lobos and Monastery. By they way, we call the sand "Monastery Berries." Anyway, that my office and you'll find me there every weekend. I'm really glad you did so much diving. I've had people come for two tank dives that have never been in cold water before and after the first dive say they've had enough. It is interesting getting used to all that neoprene and weight needed for cold water huh. LOL

Anyway, really awesome report, thank you for sharing and contributing to the dive stories of those of us in NorCal and those that want to visit.

By the way, I'm originally from NYC. Where in NYC are you?
 
Great read. Thanks for posting. We dive there regularly and it’s nice to read about great new experiences that people have enjoying sites that we sometimes take for granted. Many people use Breakwater scuba as it’s walking distance from San Carlos beach. It’s nice to see some good experiences with some of our other great dive shops in the area. Hats off to Aquarius for doing such a good job making your experience special. Hope you can come back soon.
 
Thank you for your report, and it came very timely for me as I am heading there in a few weeks. But I have one question. As many times as you mentioned 'cold water', I do not see anywhere where you mentioned how cold. I plan on bringing my drysuit, but would like to know what you saw as water temp so I know what undergarments to bring. Again, thank you for a very detailed report and beautiful pictures!
 
Thank you for your report, and it came very timely for me as I am heading there in a few weeks. But I have one question. As many times as you mentioned 'cold water', I do not see anywhere where you mentioned how cold. I plan on bringing my drysuit, but would like to know what you saw as water temp so I know what undergarments to bring. Again, thank you for a very detailed report and beautiful pictures!

Hi! I am in Monterey every weekend. I can tell you with certainty that the water is 55F pretty much year 'round. When will you be in Monterey? It would be so much fun to meet a ScubaBoard person and it would be my honor to dive with you or be your dive guide one day during your visit. Have you dove here before?
 
I really enjoyed your report.
I dive Monterey once in a great while now. I used to dive there more when I was helping with classes at breakwater. At one time there were more dive boats too and I used to book day trips regularly.
I live and dive north from Monterey, up in Sonoma County north of the GG bridge. It’s much wilder, way less people, more fish life, larger animals. Getting to it is the challenge though, so is the weather. But it’s local and close by to me so I make the most out of it. Between Sonoma County and Mendocino county we have about 60 miles of terrain similar to Pt Lobos and Big Sur. But there are no charter boats or services. Most people who explore it and dive it own their own boats and motor long distances to get to some of the sites. It’s very wild and unpredictable, the weather can change rapidly.

The other thing I would recommend for you the next time you’re out this way is to get on a Southern California dive charter boat out to the Channel Islands and go to some of the marine preserves. Tons of fish life, huge lobsters to look at, playful seals and sea lions. The boats don’t babysit you or treat you like a child. You can dive anyway you want.
 
Very nice report! It sounds like you truly enjoyed yourself and you hit all the right dive sites, especially Point Lobos and Monastery. By they way, we call the sand "Monastery Berries." Anyway, that my office and you'll find me there every weekend. I'm really glad you did so much diving. I've had people come for two tank dives that have never been in cold water before and after the first dive say they've had enough. It is interesting getting used to all that neoprene and weight needed for cold water huh. LOL

Anyway, really awesome report, thank you for sharing and contributing to the dive stories of those of us in NorCal and those that want to visit.

By the way, I'm originally from NYC. Where in NYC are you?

I live in Lower Manhattan.

Did you dive when you lived in New York? Now that I feel comfortable with cold water diving, I do plan to start diving locally. Any recommendations? Aside from Dutch Springs, it seems like the local scene here consists largely of deep wreck dives on charters that fill up months in advance.
 
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