| 
*NEW* - View a map to this dive
site on DiveTrail!
La
Jolla Shores
is one of the more popular dive sites in San Diego and once you've
been diving there you'll see why. La Jolla Shores is a beach that
usually has very small waves so it's easy to get in and out of.
It's also located near a bathroom with showers and a nice grassy
park. Now, lets talk about the diving. About 100 yards offshore
is a dropoff which starts at about 50 feet and continues in a series
of ledges down to 800+ feet. The main drop off or ledge is the one
that contains the most sea life. There are holes in the ledge which
contain small fish, lobster, octopus, and more. It's almost like
a wall dive but not quite. On your way out to the ledge you can
find numerous leopard sharks (I've seen them up to 6ft) , Turbot,
Shovel Nosed Sharks, Sea Stars, Sting Rays(image),
Surf Perch (which usually swim near the surface so just glance up
to see them in about 10-15ft of water.), numerous schools of bait
fish, huge sand dollar beds and there are lots of other things you
can see that I have probably forgotten to mention. To get to the
main point of the drop off head straight out from the bathrooms
on vallecitos street and there will be a white buoy to your left
anchored at about 40 feet that will mark the start of the drop off.
Don't swim over to the buoy, just use it as a reference point. One
you descend down to the ledge follow it north about 100 yards and
you will come to a point where large sheephead like to hang out.
The cool thing is, they aren't that timid and will swim up and say
hi. At this point I have also seen huge schools of baitfish. This
is a must see spot when you dive at the shores. When you dive there
you'll want to bring a light to look in the holes at the ledge and
a large wetsuit because it gets really chilly around 60 ft. You'll
also want to watch where you put your hands if you decide not to
remain nuetral as you coast along the bottom or you might hit some
stingrays. Which brings up another point, there are hundreds of
stringrays and guitar fish buried in the sand and they dont move
untill you touch them or swim above them. La Jolla Shores is also
used by dive classes for certification requirements. So don't be
surprised if you see a bunch of students. Squid Spawning- The Squid Spawning
is perhaps one of the finest attractions of La Jolla Shores. Around
Spring Break thousands of squid come up from the depths to spawn
at the beginning of the drop off. At times all you can see below
you are white pulsating squid eggs and all you can see around you
are squid. It's an awesome spectacle of mother nature. Huge bat
rays can be seen feeding on the squid eggs and by huge I mean 6+
ft wing spans. There will also be other fish feeding on the squid
eggs as well. You can tell it's squid spawning time by looking for
the large amounts of birds just offshore feeding on the squid. If
possible do a squid dive. You'll never regret it. 
Live
Shot of
La Jolla Shores
|
