Need some clarification on Metridium Field location.

So I've read a lot of directions and a lot of them aren't clear - line up with the bathrooms along Reeside (uh... lined up how? Lined up due east of them you mean?), follow the big giant pipe - 30inches across, what direction does the pipe flow, east-west?, how far out does it flow to (out to where the coast guard pier makes its south east bend?

Here is a map of there area:
http://www.divemonterey.info/Images/BreakwaterMap.pdf
It doesn't really help with surface line-ups but you can get a bird's eye view of the area.
And if you are into maps, there are a few more of this area on my site:
breakwaterMonterey Dive Infomation- Breakwater

Ben

Swim out so both restrooms make a 90 degree angle on you, the large pipe is just north of you now. the pipe is about 30inches in diameter it is big., dont follow the smaller ones, just wait for big pipe., it will be there in about 20ft of water. follow it to the end, then take 0 heading, fields just about 50ft out, you can see them on a good day. from first field formation, you can get to second and then to 3rd following same 0 degree.

this is probably the easiest technique how to find it, it has very good headings as well as some distance, to add to the link, he is talking about left side of the beach (far from the wall) - there is only one ramp on the beach. Most of the classes are on the right side by the wall.

SCUBA MONTEREY: Monterey SCUBA Diving Information Page

hope it helps a bit
jiri

Here is the easy peasy way. I've done this dozens and dozens of times and always hit 'em, even with vis less than 5 ft, and you only need your compass once.

At the beach near the bathrooms and the old foundation, swim out until you line up with Reeside Ave. The street goes uphill, so when you're on the water it'll look like a straight line going up the hill. Swim out until you're about 100 yds from the beach. Descend and swim north until you find the BIG pipe. Follow the big pipe out until the end, then continue on that path and go a little to the left (11 o'clock position if the pipe is at 12 o'clock), about 50 ft past the end of the pipe.

I'll add a bit to dannobee's suggestion, which is right on.

When you're out as dannobee described, follow Reeside up to the intersection with Foam. There is a traffic light on the left side of Reeside as you face it from the sea, and that traffic light is very visible out at sea. If it is blocked by the Steinbeck sign on Canney Row, you're not out far enough. You can use that Steinbeck sign just like a boater uses a range marker. What you want to do is line up the traffic sign with the right edge of the rightmost blockhouse on the beach. When you have the traffic light directly over the right corner of that blockhouse, you are directly over the pipe. What you should then do is back off to the west about 25', drop down, and swim on the bottom on a heading of 120 degrees until you bump into the pipe. Alternatively, move about 25' towards the pier, drop down, and swim on a heading of 300 degrees. Either way will bring you in at right angles to the pipe, since it goes out from shore on a heading of 030.

I think I once measured the distance from the end of the pipe to the first rock pile as 70'. Go due north and you will hit the eastern edge of that first rock pile. After that one, I've found you get more piles if you go NE (045) than if you continue going straight north. In fact, I went out a couple of years ago and swam a grid starting at that first rock pile. I was surprised to discover that the path straight north goes through a Metridium barren for over 100'. There are lots of piles to the left and to the right, but none that you're going to see in <20' vis. until you've gone over 100'!

zf2nt:

I think I once measured the distance from the end of the pipe to the first rock pile as 70'.

Click to expand...

I once saw the metridium fields from the end of the pipe

Keep your friends close and your anemones closer

I line up the radio tower with the bend in the breakwater, making sure that I'm slightly east of the bathrooms. It's sort of a stupid way to set up a range, but it works okay for me. At that point, the stairs in by the breakwater should be due south. At that point, you can either head northwest for a couple minutes or north for just long enough to be convinced that you missed it. The follow the pipe to the end, say hi to the giant gopher rockfish that lives inside and head north to the main fields or, on a good vis day, go east and you'll be between two other fields that are 30' or so apart. It's cool to hang out between them sometimes.

The pipe is almost completely buried in the 25'-30' depth range, so if you drop down a bit early (<30') definitely head north rather than northwest so you don't miss it.