While exploring Carmel earlier this month, we wanted to go kayaking in Monterey Bay, which is only a 10 minute drive away from Carmel. I was uber jealous that Jacob saw sea lions while kayaking in San Diego on a bachelor party, so I made him go again with me! It’s like when your significant other goes to see the movie without you. It’s only fair he sees it twice, right? :P
Turns out that this was a much better tour than the one in San Diego. We went with Adventures by the Sea, and we learned so much about the marine life in Monterey Bay and the California coast in general. We even got to hold a few sea slugs in our hands!
Also, if you’re anything like me and want to take photos and enjoy the view, bring along a partner to paddle for you. I made Jacob do all the hard work so that I could take all the photos. ;)
We found a Melibe sea slug and held the slimy creature in our hands.
There were sea lions galore hanging out especially on the Coast Guard Pier.
I’ve seen some starfish in tropical places on the beach, but this is the first time I saw them in the US! There were so many of them clinging to the sides of the walls.
Do you see the purple sea urchin? It was wild.. to see them in the wild. :P
There were tons of sea lions, however, seals and sea otters were harder to spot.
Adventures by the Sea
299 Cannery Row #1
Monnterey CA 93940
831.372.1807
TIPS FOR KAYAKING IN MONTEREY BAY:
- You don’t need any kayaking experience, they will instruct you on what to do.
- They will give you a splash suit. Wear swim attire or quick dry clothes underneath.
- They also provide a dry sack for your camera or any other small items you don’t want wet. A DSLR will fit in your dry sack, but we didn’t want to risk it so we just took our phones.
- Bring your waterproof phone case and if you have underwater housing for your DSLR, even better!
- Use a ziplock bag to have the very minimum protection for your phone / camera. We don’t recommend that it be your only form of protection.
- Bring a change of clothes for after. They have a dressing room and a cubby where you can stash your dry clothes while you’re on your tour.
- Don’t forget to bring cash so you can tip your tour guide.
- You can also rent a bike to explore the rest of Monterey afterwards!
MONTEREY FAMILY PACKAGE GIVEAWAY
I’m so excited that See Monterey is giving away these tickets so you can experience more of what Monterey has to offer. The package includes:
- 4 tickets to the Monterey Bay Aquarium
- 4 tickets to the MY Museum
To enter the giveaway, visit See Monterey here. If you need more info on the area, you can download a free visitor’s guide here (link is at the bottom).
What would you be most excited to see on a kayak tour?
What are your favorite things to in a beach town?
