Catalina Island best time of the year

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

Truly, September, October, November are the best "bets" for diving Catalina. You can still hit a bad weekend, but the odds are strongly in your favor.

---------- Post added November 8th, 2014 at 07:56 PM ----------

Starting January, the locals wait until the last possible minute to commit to a day of diving with commercial boat ops.
 
Second HBDiveGirl. Right now it's really nice.
 
Thx! Will shoot for late Sep early Oct as I dont do well with temps in the 50's.
 
We are having a strangely warm year this year (67F at depth friday) which you might like. Sadly, the prolonged Summer water temps hurt the signature kelp, at least where Im diving, which really makes California diving a bit different. Usually, like others said, Sept, Oct, Nov...even December are the best...always at mercy of Mother Nature. Tourists/crowds/prices have decreased in some places too.
 
I agree with Fall... except during periods of unusually warm water (like this year) when the giant kelp forests are devastated.
 
There is always beauty and adaptable life to appreciate!

The wacky Sargassum is 2 to 3 feet tall, glowing gold in the autumnal sun, swaying in the surge... And mesmerizing.

It is what it is, and there is beauty all around. Giant kelp fish in lovely yellow colors weave between the fronds and golden sun perch hunt and peck.

It's a weird season.

It's a gift to dive the sea you are in and see its irrepressible beauty.

This will be an astonishing recruitment year for Giant Sea Bass, and we'll be celebrating this year's young for decades as they mature into 6 and 7-foot long adults.

Happy Catalina diving!

~~~~~
Claudette
 
Call me crazy but Catalina diving and SoCal Channel Islands diving for me is best during February and March when it's in deep winter and seguing to early spring. Temperature is nice and cold. Sea condition is nice and flat. Everything is green and lush.
 

Back
Top Bottom