Easiest Way To Dive McAbee?

[rstofer]

We're thinking about diving McAbee tomorrow, 3/26.

One reason this is our first attempt at McAbee is that the idea of parking across the street and humping the gear to the beach is somewhat daunting.

Is it possible to use the El Torito parking lot? I don't care if it costs money and if having lunch gets my parking validated, well, that works too.

Assuming we get there fairly early, can we park at metered spaces to offload equipment? I think I heard that this was not allowed.

If we did park in the El Torito parking lot, what is Monterey's view of us trudging across the street for the shower? We usually carry several gallons of water and tend to shower in place but we would have to change somewhere.

Any problems with spare tanks or X stands disappearing?

Any thoughts about the dive conditions? It doesn't look promising but McAbee is pretty sheltered.

Richard

 

[Gombessa]

We're thinking about diving McAbee tomorrow, 3/26.

Awesome, MacAbee is great!

One reason this is our first attempt at McAbee is that the idea of parking across the street and humping the gear to the beach is somewhat daunting.

It's ridiculously close actually, although El Torito is cheaper and even closer. We trek across the street and down the beach in doubles, and we usually survive

Is it possible to use the El Torito parking lot? I don't care if it costs money and if having lunch gets my parking validated, well, that works too.

Yep. It's $7 all day I think. It's cheaper than the lot across the street. ET does seem to have inconsistent policies on whether eating lunch there validates you completely (sometimes it does, sometimes they say you're only validated for the time you spent eating).

Assuming we get there fairly early, can we park at metered spaces to offload equipment? I think I heard that this was not allowed.

I haven't heard that. We've parked in the metered spaces too and set up right there, never had a problem. How long does it take you to offload? Seriously though, just park at El Torito and do all your offloading/gearing up right there. It's maybe 5 steps further than the closest metered street parking.

If we did park in the El Torito parking lot, what is Monterey's view of us trudging across the street for the shower? We usually carry several gallons of water and tend to shower in place but we would have to change somewhere.

Most people change right in the parking lot, just be discreet. The closest restrooms are in the public parking lot on Wave and Hoffman, but they don't allow wet dive gear inside. I don't think there are public showers around. But I'm sure you could use your own water on the beach area right by the parking lot.

Any problems with spare tanks or X stands disappearing?

Nope. I accidentally left my camera on top of my car hood for a 2-hour dive once, while street-parked, during a busy Cannery Row summer weekend. I was amazed it was still there when we were done. Not that you should try it. But I leave my x-table out all the time, never had a problem.

Any thoughts about the dive conditions? It doesn't look promising but McAbee is pretty sheltered.

Should be fine, if things hold out. You MUST watch the conditions yourself for at least 15 minutes when you get there though. The site is pretty sheltered, bay-wise, though my two worst-viz-ever days in Monterey were both at MacAbee, so it can definitely wash out. And the kelp is really starting to come back.

Here'a a map I made of the area. Note that the reef pretty much runs parallel to shore, with the best action around 30-50ft depth. Get deeper than that and it's pretty much sand.

 

[Divenomad]

If you have a couple plastic tubs, the kind with rope handles, bring them and stage your gear on the sand. Upon exit after first dive, your second tank is right there, and you have a nice, sand proof place to put your gear down. In the tub. keeps everything nice and clean. Bring a tarp, a couple folding chairs, a cooler. Saves a walk back to the lot.

We turn it into a nice day there that way. I, however, dread the day when Fatso figures out my pick-a-nick basket.

Nomad

 

[Peter_C]

Macabee is a great dive site. BUT on bigger swell days is not somewhere I would ever dive again. When we arrived at the beach there was nothing more than ankle slappers. The vis was pretty bad close to the beach and the surge and current increased dramatically underwater. We surfaced less than 10 minutes after descending. The current on the surface was so strong we could barely swim against it. When we got to the beach the waves were breaking overhead. We got WORKED getting out of the water. Wound up crawling up the beach getting pounded by waves. Lost a bunch of gear like our masks, one fin that I threw way up on the beach past the current surf zone...at the time.

Seeing the ocean change that dramatically gave me new respect for an ocean I know better then to turn my back too.

Swell direction has a lot to do with what parts of the bays and coves get hit by waves. Make sure to read the swell forecasts and as said above study the water for a bit of time before going diving. There is nothing down there worth dying over, and a day spent at the aquarium instead of diving can be very rewarding too. Of course we have had Lobos reservations and gone to Lobos for a hike instead, due to conditions.

 

[zf2nt]

The map Ken posted must be right (after all, it came from BAUE!), but it doesn't fit with my own experience there. I usually go straight out from shore on a heading of 045, and quit going out when I hit the final ledge at 65'. After that, as Ken said, there's nothing but a flat sand bottom. However, I have noticed the bottom become progressively more interesting after about 50' of depth, with the final drop being about 10' high down to a 65' bottom. Even allowing for tidal changes, that says it must be at least 60' at the base of that ledge even at low tide.

Frankly, I think McAbee is a very unappreciated dive site. It's got a bottom that is much more interesting than Breakwater, yet the surf and surge there are usually no worse than Breakwater. As Peter said, though, that depends on swell direction and there are indeed times where there is a marked difference from BW.

Bruce

 

[rstofer]

We decided to wimp out. The wave forecast didn't look all that promising and 6 hours round trip would be a waste. On the brighter side, spring break comes up in two weeks (11th - 19th) and we plan to haunt Monterey. It's hard to say that the conditions will be better but we have more days to choose from. We'll probably try to dive 4 of the 9 days.

My grandson is limited to 40' and we try to keep it around 30' so we won't be going all that far out. We have never been to McAbee but at Lover's Pt #3, you have to swim a very long way out to get to 30'.

Richard

 

[Gombessa]

The map Ken posted must be right (after all, it came from BAUE!), but it doesn't fit with my own experience there. I usually go straight out from shore on a heading of 045, and quit going out when I hit the final ledge at 65'. After that, as Ken said, there's nothing but a flat sand bottom. However, I have noticed the bottom become progressively more interesting after about 50' of depth, with the final drop being about 10' high down to a 65' bottom. Even allowing for tidal changes, that says it must be at least 60' at the base of that ledge even at low tide.

Frankly, I think McAbee is a very unappreciated dive site. It's got a bottom that is much more interesting than Breakwater, yet the surf and surge there are usually no worse than Breakwater. As Peter said, though, that depends on swell direction and there are indeed times where there is a marked difference from BW.

Bruce,

We've hit this exact ledge as described a couple of times, both on accident (I recall there's a very short sand traverse before hitting the final 60-65ft drop). I agree, that area is super-fun, and I don't think it doesn't seem to run along the entire reef, so if you happen to miss it, you hit the real sand bottom early. It's a great area though, the first time I've seen metridium at MacAbee.

I've heard about PeterC's experience there and it's really sobering. Just goes to show you that even the most benign-looking sites deserve a lot of respect.