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duration of our dive. As we’re swimming back to
shore, it occurs to me why the site is so special: This
lush forest is like a time warp, revealing to visitors
what the ocean used to look like. It’s a California that
is nearly impossible to see now.
The town of Monterey attracts thousands of
oceangoing visitors every year. Divers in particular
are drawn to this area because of the variety and easy
accessibility of world-class dive sites in the two bays that
lie on either side of the Monterey Peninsula. Carmel
Bay, on the southern aspect of the peninsula, is where
we commonly begin our dive trips to this region, and
little wonder: The intricate system of marine protected
areas here means the fish life is prolific and bold. Of
Carmel’s dive sites, the most revered lie within Point
Lobos State Natural Reserve, a park that encompasses
and protects almost 10,500 acres, 9,900 of which are
underwater. Whalers Cove is the access point on shore;
its boat ramp provides a convenient entry point for
divers and snorkelers. Immediately to the northwest
is
Bluefish Cove
, a pristine kelp forest that lacks a
separate entry point but can easily be reached by a small
watercraft launched at Whalers.
We’re getting ready to go for a second dip at Whalers
when a diver with a rigid-hulled inflatable invites us
to accompany him for a dive “around the corner.” We
gratefully accept and toss our gear into the boat before
he can change his mind. Soon we’re off, bypassing
Bluefish Cove and anchoring at adjacent
Outer
Bluefish Pinnacle
. This twinned pinnacle reaches to
within 35 feet of the surface and is covered with brightly
colored sponges, hydrocoral, starfish, anemones and
keyhole limpets. I’m admiring the colorful invertebrate
life in the shallows when I see frantic signaling from
my buddy. He waves his hands magician-style (voila!)
to reveal a bizarre find: a massive lime-green lingcod
resting in a floating kelp holdfast.
The next day we are planning to dive from
Monastery Beach
, a publicly accessible stretch of sand
just north of the reserve. Monastery provides shore
access to dive sites known for steep, plunging walls
and equally steep entry points. The former means
advanced divers are drawn here by the bewitching
possibility of distinctive deep dives, but the latter make
for challenging, rubbly entries that are made worse
by a short but mighty surf zone — factors that have
resulted in ominous nicknames (such as “Monsterberry
Beach” and the even more sinister “Mortuary Beach”).
Although dramatic dropoffs, sponge-covered boulders
and myriad large rockfish reward persistent divers, I
can’t help but be a little apprehensive.
From far left: Ochre and bat stars adorn the Monterey Bay rocks at
low tide. A cabezon and a lingcod rest side by side on the rocky
reefs of the Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. A fish-eating
aneomone (Urticina piscivora) awaits prey.
