Diving Monterey Bay

Most divers in the San Francisco area dive around Monterey. In fact, Monterey Bay is so popular with divers that sometimes I mistake them for sea lions bobbing in the water.

Divers here can swim in the giant kelp beds (it grows up to 12 inches a days in the summer), along with the sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals. If you can't figure out what that finned whaddycallit was, try the California Department of Fish and Game can help, with an extensive fish identification index.

If you're traveling with non-divers, the Monterey area is a great place to be. They can find plenty to do while you're under the water.

For information about diving locations:

Point Lobos State Reserve

Mitchell Scuba College

If you don't have a diving buddy traveling with you, try one of these group trips:

Cypress Charters: Boards in Monterey and morning, afternoon, or full day trips.

Peninsula Diving Center: Arranges beach and boat dives on the Monterey Express

No matter how you enjoy our ocean's bounty, remember that our planet is more than seventy percent water, and there's no one to take care of it but us! "The happiness of the bee and the dolphin is to exist. For man it is to know that and to wonder at it." - Jacques Cousteau