Snorkeling and diving in Laguna Beach

Where the water is clear enough to look

In Laguna Beach you snorkel and dive in coves cut into a rocky coast. CDFW describes shallow kelp-filled water, rocky reefs and surfgrass meadows inside the reserve, with leopard sharks, horn sharks, California sheephead, blacksmith and spiny lobster among the residents. Its Laguna Beach page lists snorkeling, scuba diving and freediving as popular, along with kayaking, paddle boarding and surfing.

All of that sits inside the Laguna Beach State Marine Reserve and the conservation area south of Goff Island. Swimming, wading, boating, diving and surfing are allowed unless a rule says otherwise, and taking anything is not. The marine reserves page has the boundaries.

Cove by cove

The city’s beach pages tell you what each cove is used for and what can go wrong there.

North Laguna

Crescent Bay lists skin and scuba diving among its activities. The city also calls the surf a strong shorebreak, notes that rip currents can be present depending on conditions and says the cove can be a dangerous place to enter the water. A large rock called Seal Rock sits about 120 yards off the north point; swimmers and kayakers are not allowed on it and should keep away from the seals and sea lions that rest there.

Shaw’s Cove lists swimming, skin diving and scuba diving. The city says hazardous conditions may exist anywhere in the cove, that the surf is often a mild shore break, and that small rips form along the rocky points. A dive shop’s site list names Fisherman’s Cove for its kelp beds.

Divers Cove is steep, with a shorebreak under all conditions. The city says the rocks and the north point close under high tides or surf and that the whole cove turns into a rip pulling south in heavy surf. Next door, Boat Canyon Beach has a rocky bottom and a drop-off about five feet from shore. The city says the Splash Rock area attracts divers and should be avoided by swimmers.

Picnic Beach lists skin and scuba diving. Submerged rocks make swimming hazardous, especially at the south end, and the south rocks close in large surf or high tide.

The Village and Woods Cove

A sunken barge lies off Cleo Street, according to a dive shop’s site list, which also names reef areas off Cress Street. At Pearl Street, the city lists diving and says to stay off Arch Rock for climbing, jumping or diving. At Woods Cove, it bans diving or jumping off any rock and asks you to check with a lifeguard before exploring the north rocks.

South of town

Treasure Island appears on the same shop’s list marked as accessible by its Riviera boat. In the Dana Point conservation area, CDFW names Thousand Steps and Monarch Point as kelp forest and rocky reef dive sites.

Rules and safety

Take nothing. In the reserve and the no-take area, taking or possessing any living, geological or cultural marine resource is unlawful, and the city repeats the rule at its beaches. The Dana Point area allows recreational take of finfish by hook-and-line or spearfishing, and of lobster and urchin, but not from tide pools. If you plan to spearfish or collect, check the CDFW map for the line you are near.

The city’s own advice is plain. Swim near a lifeguard and with a buddy. Not every beach has a lifeguard at all times. Read the posted signs and flags, because lifeguards use flags to mark hazards that change. Do not drink alcohol on the beach, since the city bans it on all of them. If a rip current catches you, the city’s Marine Safety tips say not to fight it; swim parallel to shore until it relaxes, then swim back. Marine Safety answers questions at (949) 497-0310.

Rocks are the other hazard. The city says the rocky outcroppings are very dangerous and that unpredictable waves have swept many beachgoers off their feet, and its beach pages close some rocks in high tides or surf. Do not climb them to launch or exit.

Gear, classes and boat dives

Beach Cities Scuba lists a store at 925 N Coast Highway in Laguna Beach. Its site offers PADI classes and links to a Riviera dive charter for boat dives. A dive shop is also the place to ask what gear a given cove calls for.

For tide pools you can see without getting wet, read tide pools. For paddling over the same reefs, see kayaking and paddleboarding.