Advice on Shore Dives South of Pt. Lobos North of Big Sur

[ScubaBumps]

I'm extending my diving range south of Pt. Lobos and would welcome any advice and recommendations you have about shore diving sites. I thought I'd work south and stick with sites north of Big Sur this year, saving the Big Sur to Jade Cove section of Highway 1 for later.

Thanks for your advice,

Steve

 

[dannobee]

You should really dive with someone who knows the terrain. I could tell you places like mile marker 66.00, Moby Ling Cove, Waterfall Beach, Jumpoff Rock, mile marker 67.00 and a plethora of other names, but you'll likely think that there's no way down there once you get out of the car. I assure you that there is.

There are some pics of Moby Ling Cove in my SB gallery, along with some helpful hints. It's one of the easier sites, although the walk to the water is rather longish (think the distance from the upper lot at breakwater down to the pump house). Watch out for the poison oak.

I could probably be tempted to show you a few spots, but I don't know what my schedule looks like right now.

This is single tank diving without scooters, btw. The diving is beautiful and relatively untouched, with plenty of life. With most of the sites you start diving as soon as you hit the water (no kicking out a hundred yards or anything like that).

 

[ScubaBumps]

Thanks for the information. I'm going to drive down the coast a couple of times to survey sites, without doing any diving. This makes it easier to spot the trails, and the poison oak.

 

[FishDiver]

Timely OP. I was just reading Dannobee's response to my earlier post about shore diving in Big Sur and Garrapata SP. Maybe we can convince him to give a few of us a tour of the area.

 

[andrewy]

im on.

 

[ScubaBumps]

Farty and I spent Friday surveying shore dive sites south of Point Lobos. We went to Mile Marker 67, Mile Marker 66, Moby Ling Cove, and Reverse Cove. Our goals were to locate approach trails and entries that would not require superhuman effort and to plan for a return trip of at least 2 dives.

All of these sites are wonderously beautiful. People stopping for pictures up at the road short change themselves by not walking down the bluffs. Each site has one or more deep, sheltered coves with clear water that you can easily see 30 feet down into. From the rocks above, I could see fish, kelp, invertebrates, and a mermaid or two. The bottom sand is off-white, so the water has that hypnotic aquamarine color so familiar up in Carmel. You have an urge to jump in, just for a look.

The bad news is you cannot make a safe approach and entry at any, except one, of these sites. More accurately, there are places to get into the water, but making an exit carrying tanks could turn you into sea star food. Thanks to the wet winter, the access trails are eroded to where you are as likely to end up in a body cast, as to end up in your scuba gear. Farty and I checked the approaches thoroughly. It seems at one time there were better trails. For example, there are the ruins of cement stairs at Moby Ling.

The exception is Reverse Cove. It's still an advanced dive site and a long trek to the entry point. However, the reward outweighs the effort. There is a quarter mile walk to a low bluff that you can carry tanks down. At the bottom of the bluff is a tiny sub-cove that gives a sheltered entry to the larger Reverse Cove. This is a good site for a day trip where you carry your gear in, suit up on shore, and make a couple of dives, with lunch and a beach nap in the sun in between, harbor seal style.

Note that these sites are perfect for freediving, if not for scuba. I'll probably return to a few of them for an in-water, snorkel-only survey. With water so clear, and the shallow coves, tanks aren't worth the risk and effort.

Steve

 

[btroxell]

The bad news is you cannot make a safe approach and entry at any except one of these sites.

I will have to disagree with you. I have dived MM67 without a problem; but you can only dive it with good conditions. Yesterday I was hoping to get to Waterfall Beach but we stopped at Monastery because it did not look like the conditions we calm enough to head further south. And you have to be able to call the dive when it looks dicey. Last summer my wife and I drug our kayaks to the big sandy beach at Garapata and after watching the waves, we called it and went back to Monastery. If you have a problem with calling a dive due to conditions, don't head south because you will be temped to dive in unsafe conditions.
Like Dan said, maybe you should go down with someone who knows the terrain. I have a web site (Monterey Dive Infomation- Dive site description) which has a few of the sites at Garapata.
Did you check out Mal Paso Cr? It's close to Yankee Pt and an easy (but long) walk down to a sandy beach.
All of these sites are exposed and far from help so be careful when diving them.

Ben

 

[ScubaBumps]

I figure there are secrets to these spots that are not obvious to a newcomer. Guide from an experienced diver could make all the difference.

I'm truly impressed that you made it down to, and out of, Mile Marker 67. It's a beautiful cove that I'd love to dive. Working down the chute into the cove was too much for us even without gear. We worked around the right hand side of the cove to the point at the entrance and saw how you could drop into the water, but not how to get out.

At Mile Marker 66/Waterfall Beach, I could see that a determined diver can get down and out of the beach. Even without gear, though, I managed to slip and fall. I did get a picture of the waterfall.

I'll check Malpaso Creek on my next trip down. I saw it on Highway One at the south end of Carmel Highlands.

Thanks,

Steve

 

[dannobee]

Like I said in my original post, I assure you that you can scuba dive these spots as I've done it. You just need somebody to show you how/where to enter and exit. Leave your fears at the car though, and it's a lot easier once you've seen someone else do it. But again, it's single tank diving, don't try this with doubles or scooters (although I could do Moby Ling Cove in doubles OR with a scooter).

Moby Ling cove is probably one of the easiest. Once you get on the hard granite, walk all the way to the end and do a giant stride entry into the little cove that has an 8-10 ft deep pool. Exit about 30 ft closer to the path where the stairs used to be and crawl up onto the granite, using the waves to help you.

Ben and I went diving at MM67 last year, so I know it's doable. I even forgot my weight belt and didn't remember until we started descending. I climbed back up, got it, walked back down and went diving. If this fat old man can do it, I'm sure you guys can.

 

[ScubaBumps]

Hi,

I think Farty and I got to the place you describe at Moby Ling. Below where the cement stairs once were, there's an elongated flat area where you can giant stride into deep water at a couple of spots. One end of the flat has a small sea cave beneath it. I also saw a spot where you could climb up the rocks at about a 45 degree slant, exiting the water. I admire your determination. It's not Breakwater is it?

Steve