Dive Conditions

MontereyMcAbee Beach

McAbee Beach

Monterey (Cannery Row), Monterey Bay, California

Directions to the entryParking

Mediocre→ steady

Moderate WNW wind swell, partly blocked by the Monterey Peninsula: expect some surge on the small beach.

High confidence

High confidence: Based on a buoy reading 45 min ago; the forecast has been matching the buoy closely.

Buoy 46236 reading 11:00 AM (48 min ago)Forecast issued Tue, Oct 13, 11:27 AM PDT

Right now

Mediocre: 4 ft of wind swell at 9 s from the WNW (Monterey Canyon buoy), partly blocked here by the Monterey Peninsula; plus 3 ft at 15 s from the W; light wind.

Waves here
2.6ft
estimated
Buoy swell
3.6ft
buoy 46236
Period
9s
From
WNW
293°
Wind
5kt
light
Tide
5.5ft
Water
63°F
buoy 46236
Air
59°F

"Waves here" is estimated from the buoy and this site's exposure; the buoys are offshore. Wind and air are the NWS forecast for this hour.

When should I dive?

Today

Mediocre→ steady

Now and the rest of today's daylight, roughest hour shown. Rated at 11:44 AM.

Mediocre: 4 ft of wind swell at 9 s from the WNW (Monterey Canyon buoy), partly blocked here by the Monterey Peninsula; plus 3 ft at 15 s from the W; light wind.

High confidence

High confidence: Based on a buoy reading 48 min ago; the forecast has been matching the buoy closely.

Waves here
2.6ft
Buoy swell
3.6ft
Period
9s
Wind
5ktlight
Morning–passed
MiddayMediocre2.6 ft · 5 kt
AfternoonMediocre2.4 ft · 13 kt

High 1:18 AM, 4 ftLow 5:55 AM, 2.7 ftHigh 12:02 PM, 5.5 ftLow 7:26 PM, 0.1 ft

Wed, Oct 14

Good→ steadyBest day this week

7 to 11 AM dive window, roughest hour shown. Rated at 7:00 AM.

Good: 2 ft at 14 s from the W (Monterey Canyon buoy), partly blocked here by the Monterey Peninsula, long period so the surge runs deep; plus 2 ft at 6 s from the WNW; plus 2 ft at 16 s from the SSW; 6 kt onshore wind.

Medium confidence

Medium confidence: A forecast about 19 hours ahead; the forecast has been matching the buoy closely.

Waves here
2.2ft
Buoy swell
2.4ft
Period
14s
Wind
6ktonshore
MorningGood2.2 ft · 6 kt
MiddayGood2.1 ft · 5 kt
AfternoonGood2.1 ft · 10 kt

High 2:20 AM, 3.8 ftLow 6:24 AM, 3 ftHigh 12:33 PM, 5.3 ftLow 8:15 PM, 0.3 ft

Thu, Oct 15

Good→ steady

7 to 11 AM dive window, roughest hour shown. Rated at 7:00 AM.

Good: 2 ft at 15 s from the S (Monterey Canyon buoy), partly blocked here by the Monterey Peninsula, long period so the surge runs deep; plus 2 ft at 13 s from the WNW; plus 2 ft at 6 s from the NW; 8 kt onshore wind.

Medium confidence

Medium confidence: A forecast about 43 hours ahead; the forecast has been matching the buoy closely.

Waves here
1.9ft
Buoy swell
2.2ft
Period
15s
Wind
8ktonshore
MorningGood1.9 ft · 8 kt
MiddayGood1.9 ft · 9 kt
AfternoonGood2 ft · 9 kt

High 3:37 AM, 3.6 ftLow 6:55 AM, 3.3 ftHigh 1:10 PM, 5.1 ftLow 9:11 PM, 0.4 ft

Fri, Oct 16

Good→ steady

7 to 11 AM dive window, roughest hour shown. Rated at 7:00 AM.

Good: 2 ft at 12 s from the WNW (Monterey Canyon buoy), partly blocked here by the Monterey Peninsula; plus 2 ft at 15 s from the SSW; 8 kt onshore wind; Low confidence.

Low confidence

Low confidence: A forecast about 67 hours ahead; the forecast has been matching the buoy closely.

Waves here
1.8ft
Buoy swell
2.4ft
Period
12s
Wind
8ktonshore
MorningGood1.8 ft · 8 kt
MiddayGood1.7 ft · 4 kt
AfternoonGood1.8 ft · 8 kt

High 5:10 AM, 3.6 ftLow 7:37 AM, 3.5 ftHigh 1:58 PM, 4.8 ftLow 10:14 PM, 0.6 ft

Sat, Oct 17

Good↑ swell building, peaking around 9 pm Sat

7 to 11 AM dive window, roughest hour shown. Rated at 9:00 AM.

Good: 2 ft at 7 s from the WNW (Monterey Canyon buoy), partly blocked here by the Monterey Peninsula; plus 2 ft at 14 s from the SSW; plus 1 ft at 13 s from the WNW; plus 1 ft at 19 s from the SSW; plus 1 ft at 11 s from the WNW; light wind; swell building, peaking around 9 pm Sat; Low confidence.

Low confidence

Low confidence: A forecast about 93 hours ahead; the forecast has been matching the buoy closely.

Waves here
2ft
Buoy swell
2.3ft
Period
7s
Wind
5ktlight
MorningGood2 ft · 5 kt
MiddayGood2.3 ft · 10 kt
AfternoonGood2.8 ft · 10 kt

High 6:33 AM, 3.7 ftLow 9:03 AM, 3.6 ftHigh 3:04 PM, 4.5 ftLow 11:18 PM, 0.6 ft

Next five days, hour by hour

Rating
Tue 12:00 PM to Tue 6:00 PM: Mediocre; up to 2.6 ft here, 15 s, wind up to 14 ktTue 6:00 PM to Tue 11:00 PM: Good; up to 3.1 ft here, 15 s, wind up to 15 ktTue 11:00 PM to Wed 12:00 AM: Mediocre; up to 2.4 ft here, 14 s, wind up to 8 ktWed 12:00 AM to Sat 9:00 PM: Good; up to 2.8 ft here, 15 s, wind up to 10 ktNowTodayWedThuFriSatTue 12:00 PM to Tue 6:00 PM: Mediocre; up to 2.6 ft here, 15 s, wind up to 14 ktTue 6:00 PM to Tue 11:00 PM: Good; up to 3.1 ft here, 15 s, wind up to 15 ktTue 11:00 PM to Wed 12:00 AM: Mediocre; up to 2.4 ft here, 14 s, wind up to 8 ktWed 12:00 AM to Sat 9:00 PM: Good; up to 2.8 ft here, 15 s, wind up to 10 ktNowTodayWedThuFriSat

Tap a stretch of the ribbon for its times and numbers.

Waves here (ft)
0 ft2 ft4 ftTodayWedThuFriSat0 ft2 ft4 ftTodayWedThuFriSat
Period (s)
0 s8.5 s17 sTodayWedThuFriSat0 s8.5 s17 sTodayWedThuFriSat
Wind (kt)
0 kt8.5 kt17 ktTodayWedThuFriSat0 kt8.5 kt17 ktTodayWedThuFriSat
Tide (ft)
0 ft3.5 ft7 ftTodayWedThuFriSat0 ft3.5 ft7 ftTodayWedThuFriSat

Shaded = night. Waves from the NOAA GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III) model at buoy 46236, corrected against what that buoy has measured (systematic factor 1.12, seeded until 7 days of data are logged). The rating uses each hour's waves, wind and tide.

Live conditions

Tap to play live
Monterey Bay Aquarium: Live Monterey Bay CamLooks out over the bay from Cannery Row.
Fish Hopper camLooks at McAbee Beach; a good view of waves breaking on shore.Adventures By The Sea ocean camPans from San Carlos Beach to the harbor. Boat masts rocking hard in the harbor means surge.

Recent buoy readings buoy 46236, Monterey Canyon Outer

TimeWavesPeriodFromWater
11:00 AM 48 min ago4.6 ft15 sW63°F
10:30 AM 1 h ago4.3 ft14 sW62°F
10:00 AM 2 h ago4.3 ft14 sW62°F
9:30 AM 2 h ago4.6 ft14 sW62°F
9:00 AM 3 h ago4.9 ft15 sW62°F
8:30 AM 3 h ago4.6 ft15 sW62°F
8:00 AM 4 h ago4.6 ft15 sW62°F
7:30 AM 4 h ago4.9 ft15 sWNW62°F

Randall Spangler's conditions guide · Monterey County Dive Reports

Dive-site information

Entry
A small sandy beach off Cannery Row, reached by the walkway between the buildings. Easy entry onto sand, then out to the kelp.
Access
No permit needed.
Parking
Metered street parking and paid garages on Cannery Row.
Maps
Points from OpenStreetMap; check the spot when you arrive.
Hazards
Swell that wraps into the bay breaks on this small beach; watch a few sets before you go in.
Skill
Easy entry on calm days; watch the shore break when swell wraps in. Advisory only, not a safety guarantee; always judge conditions yourself.
Site
Shallow sand and rock out to the kelp. Like the Breakwater, but slightly more open: direct swell only from about 307 to 343 degrees, with the peninsula blocking the west and south.

Advanced forecast and methodology

Buoy

Forecast check: Over the last 36 hours the forecast has matched the Monterey Canyon Outer buoy well (13 readings compared).

Buoy split now: swell 2.6 ft at 15.4 s from the W, 57% reaches this site; wind waves 3.6 ft at 8.7 s from the WNW, 59% reaches this site.

NWPS forecast vs buoy 46236Updated Tue, Oct 13, 3:52 AM PDT
NWPS forecast vs buoy 46236

Red dots: the buoy. Blue: the latest NWPS forecast; black and light blue: earlier runs. Green: the global GFS-Wave model. Times are UTC (subtract 7 hours for Pacific daylight time). View the full forecast at NOAA

30-day forecast accuracy chart · Our forecast-vs-buoy log (JSON)

Forecast models

Waves from the NOAA GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III) model at buoy 46236, corrected against what that buoy has measured (systematic factor 1.12, seeded until 7 days of data are logged). Wind and air temperature come from the NWS forecast for the water off McAbee Beach, issued Tue, Oct 13, 11:27 AM PDT.

NWS marine forecast: Monterey Bay

Today: NE wind around 5 kt, backing to W early this afternoon, rising to 10 to 15 kt late. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: NW 3 ft at 9 seconds and SW 2 ft at 17 seconds.

Tonight: N wind 10 to 15 kt, becoming NE 5 to 10 kt after midnight. Seas 3 to 5 ft. Wave Detail: W 4 ft at 8 seconds and SW 2 ft at 16 seconds.

Wed: NE wind 5 to 10 kt, backing to W in the afternoon. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: NW 3 ft at 8 seconds and SW 2 ft at 16 seconds.

Wed Night: NW wind 5 to 10 kt, veering to NE after midnight. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: NW 3 ft at 8 seconds and SW 2 ft at 15 seconds.

Issued Tue, Oct 13, 8:30 AM PDT

Swell systems at buoy 46236Updated Tue, Oct 13, 12:00 AM PDT
Swell systems at buoy 46236

Each color is one swell system; arrow length shows its size. A band at 15 s and up means long-period swell and surge. Times are UTC. View the full forecast at NOAA

Rating logic

Surge
The rating turns each swell into a "surge index" in feet: the height that reaches this site, weighted up for longer periods because long swell moves the water harder near the bottom. Here the index moves from Great to Good at 2, Mediocre at 3.3, Rough at 4.6 and Stay home at 6.5 ft. Right now it is 2.7 ft.
Direction
Like the Breakwater, but slightly more open: direct swell only from about 307 to 343 degrees, with the peninsula blocking the west and south.
Wind
Onshore wind here blows from the NNE. Onshore wind over about 10 kt chops up entries and surface swims; a strong offshore wind (over 15 kt) pushes surface swimmers out. Gusts count for half.
Tide
Heights at the Monterey tide station, in feet above mean lower low water. The entry is easiest between -0.5 and 6 ft; tide only nudges the rating.
Trend and confidence
The arrow compares the last 9 hours at the buoy with the next 12 hours of forecast; a building long-period swell can push a borderline day one step worse. Confidence is High for a fresh buoy reading or a forecast for the next 12 hours, and drops with lead time, a backup buoy, or a forecast that has been missing the buoy.
Limits
A model, not a guarantee: it does not know visibility, local sandbars or what the surf did five minutes ago. Back-tested against dive reports, it matched about 80% exactly and 91% within one level. Always look before you go in.

Sources