About Revisions Bluefish Cove - Point Lobos Point Lobos State Reserve, Carmel, CA 93923 831.624.4909 | More Info Max Depth: 121-130ft/37-40m Average Viz: 11-15ft/3-5m Entry Type: Boat Bottom Composition: Sand/Rock Aquatic Life: Plenty To See 4/06/2013 4:12 PM Canthon

Perhaps it’s because divers cannot access Bluefish Cove without a boat, or maybe a few divers in Whaler’s Cove have claimed to have seen clearer water leaking through the channels in Cannery Point Wall, but rumors are that the water is more clear, the marine life is more abundant, and the diving is more exciting. It’s true. Even if it were not protected, Bluefish Cove would offer some of the best diving in California. With the protection of its "Reserve" status, the fish have grown to maturity and, having no fear of hunters, are quite at ease with a diver hovering in their midst.

Bluefish has no protection from the full force of the open ocean. A tributary of the Carmel Submarine Canyon terminates at the northeast end of the cove, funneling deep water swells and their clear, fertile water into the cove. The swift, surge-driven currents and the pounding of high energy, open-ocean swells have carved what is left of Cannery Point into a labyrinth of pinnacles and canyons dropping precipitously from the shallows to depths well over the 130 ft. sport diving limit. Nutrient rich water sustains a community that smothers the substrate. Plants and animals compete aggressively for the space on the rocks, creating a situation where species of plants and animals grow over each other in a frenzied slow motion war for space. The density of reef life is four times that of the other dive areas in the park.

The exposure to the open sea provides opportunities to see pelagic life, and it is common to observe sea lions, pelagic jellies, molas, and the occasional whale or shark. There are times when the currents bring in huge swarms of jellies, filling the outer cove with a spectacular variety of pulsating life forms, and providing food for the hordes of Bluefish from whom the cove gets its name.