Water temp at La Jolla Cove during late December

[snoballz]

What is the water temperature like at La Jolla Cove in late December? I plan on diving during a visit during the holidays and need to plan accordingly.

I have an Atomic ST1 reg and unsure whether I should get the cold water seal installed.

TIA.

:14:

 

[stanky1]

I would say "cold" but with a name like Snoballz you might consider it to be warm. The sea surface temperature generally runs around 56 - 58 degrees F in late December. It is colder the deeper you go. It will be in the very low 50's at 30 ft.

What's it like in Gotham?

 

[pasley]

LaJolla Cove faces the North which is the predominate direction of our winter swells. This makes for a low probability of divable conditions in the winter. In December you may find some good sized waves breaking some white water onto the rocks.

I would recommend having an altrrnative dive site, La Jolla Shores perhaps.
Divebums - A San Diego Dive Website will list alternative sites.

 

[divinotter]

I know you're aiming for the cove or casa, but please just keep an open mind about the shores. It does seem like a place for just the beginner classes, but it's so much more. Every winter for years - we missed this past year- my husband and I have booked a room at La Jolla on the beach. It was called Sea Lodge but just changed its name to La Jolla Tennis club or something- anyway it's the hotel next to the Marine Room. We do this on the Martin Luther King 3 day weekend. The hotel is right next to a good entry by the boat ramp and we can gear up at the room. Although they don't encourage divers they don't discourage them either. They have cheaper Winter rates. There's a dive shop for air just down the block and staying at the hotel- parking isn't a problem. Now, for diving. We love the twilight dives - we stay until night and the lights from the hotel just make it so easy to navigate back to the entry. The critters are either just settling down to sleep or just coming out - so we've seen a lot there. It is a surface swim - but a very relaxed one- not a lot of bumping around in waves. I see less stuff in the daytime - but the canyon is always there and interesting stuff comes up sometimes. I have tried the cove on this weekend and didn't exactly get hammered- but did do an imitation of a beached whale when I got knocked down pretty good and had to crawl out between sets. There's some good dive boats there in SD you might consider as well.