Diving opportunities near Santa Ana

[erbedo]

Hi, in October-November this year I'll stay in Santa Ana, and I am wondering what are the dive opportunities of the area. I'll work there from Mon-Fri, but I'll be available on the weekends.

Does anyone have some pointers?

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

There is no diving in Santa Ana but you can drive down to Laguna to shore dive or up to Redondo. There are also plenty of dive boats out of San Pedro you can book dive trips on as well.

 

[diversteve]

Here's some links - San Diego is also not out of the question - about a 2hr drive to La Jolla.

Scuba Shore Diving Site Listing for: California Mid, USA West
Scuba Shore Diving Site Listing for: California South, USA West

There's other shops but Beach Cities has the Laguna Beach area covered pretty well.
Beach Cities Scuba Centers

California Dive Boats : The Official Page
Some of the boats allow you to board the night before so you wake up at the dive site. It saves a night in a motel.

Divebums - A San Diego Dive Website
The 4 Sport Chalet shops closed last year but I believe all the other shops listed are still open.

 

[jensfisc]

Oct-Nov is usually a pretty good time conditions wise. I live in SA, and the closest spots to dive are Corona del Mar (dive sites call big/little corona) which is a good beginner site but not as pretty as laguna can be. Crystal cove is just south of there but has a long walk down some steep trails to get to the surf and a less forgiving entry. If you are not used to entering in surf, pick one of the beginner spots that has a sandy beach entry (Shaws Cove, Crescent Bay, (big) Corona del Mar) and don't bother if the waves are bigger than 2-3. CDIP recent forecast fm_scb_xxx and North Orange County Surf Spots and Breaks are some good surf height predictors.The water (on the surface) will probably be high 50s - low 60s ~14-16c so you will need a wetsuit, most people are diving 7mm suits with a hood/gloves/boots that time of year, but you can get by with a 5mm for single shore dives depending on your cold tolerance.

Really the must see for California are the kelp forests, which are somewhat diminished right now from the warm water the last 2 years, but they are bouncing back quickly. The catalina dive park has some good kelp as do a couple spots in laguna. La Jolla kelp is pretty epic, and you can spend an entire dive winding through the forest exploring. Stay close to your buddy as its easy to get lost, turned around or snagged in the kelp. It is also eerie and dark at times when the canopy blocks the sunlight well, primarily diving here we take it for granted what a unique ecosystem the kelp is. Ping the thread when you get in town and maybe I will be available to show you some sites.