 Printer-Friendly | Back  Many of us have fantasies about exploring ancient castles complete with dungeons, jewels, and medieval knights. While we don’t often have the time to fly to Europe there is a more accessible castle-like dive site in Monterey Bay that will delight the most jaded of divers. Eric’s Pinnacle is located about a mile offshore of the city of Pacific Grove and is one of the few true pinnacle dives in the Monterey Bay. This site is often hard to find since it may only be marked by a wisp of kelp, and often has no kelp on it at all. Eric Minard brother of Dave Minard, captain of the Cypress Sea, first discovered this pinnacle.When viewed from underwater it appears as a storybook castle complete with a main tower ringed by many smaller spires. The top is in about 20 feet of water and the sides drop off vertically, or in a series of giant steps, to 60 feet on the out shore side, and to about 50 feet on the inshore side. Every castle has its jewels and Eric’s jewels are on top. The upper portion of the pinnacle is covered with thick growth of Corynactis anemones, cup corals, sponges, and red Tealia anemones. The encrusting marine life covers every inch of rock in a mostly red carpet. Look for little nudibranchs, hermit crabs, and dock shrimp among the colorful anemones.  No castle would be complete without its share of secret passageways, and this one is honeycombed with deep cracks and fissures. Look for numerous, small rockfish in the cracks. There are also a fair number of small fish on Eric’s such as black-eyed gobies and sculpins. The court jester has got to be the painted greenlings. A school of knights in the shape of blue rockfish guard the rock and feed on whatever the bay currents bring to them. Every castle must have a dungeon, and Eric’s is no exception. If you notice a pile of shells in a heap at the base of the pinnacle, follow the debris up to a large crack. There you will find Eric’s dungeon master, a resident wolf eel. Around the base of the pinnacle is a field of rather large boulders, some 10 or 12 feet in diameter. While the invertebrate life here is not as spectacular as on the main pinnacle, there are several huge Metridium anemones that make great photographic subjects. If you are lucky you might get a glimpse of a small lingcod, bat ray or torpedo ray cruising along the 60-foot bottom. Sea otters are often found foraging for invertebrates in the sand between the rocks, or napping in the nearby kelp bed. Eric’s Pinnacle is a site with a lot of possibilities, and is a popular dive with charter dive boats. Real castles are rare in California, but this underwater castle in Monterey Bay is certainly worth a visit. Check it out the next time you visit Monterey, and remember to bring your fantasies and curiosity with you. Dive Spot At A Glance  Location: Offshore of the north end of Otter Cove. It is about 50 yards beyond the edge of the Otter Cove Kelp Bed and only is marked with a thin wisp of kelp. Those with GPS may find the pinnacle at 36°38.044’ N 121°55.101’ W. Those without GPS can start way out and line up the white pole on the left side of 929 Ocean View Blvd. with the red brick chimney on the house behind and above. When you depth finder jumps to 20 feet, you are there.Access and Entry: This site is too far from the beach to swim. Divers may launch boats from the Monterey Breakwater or kayaks from Lovers Point or Otter Cove entries. This site is frequented by Monterey’s charter dive boats. Depth: 20 to 60 feet. Skill Level: Beginner to Advanced. Photography: Good wide-angle photography for the pinnacle itself, and for diver portraits. Good macro photography for nudibranchs and encrusting invertebrates. Hunting: This area is part of the Pacific Grove Marine Gardens Fish Reserve and no invertebrates may be taken. There are a few rockfish here but, you are better off taking your spearguns elsewhere. Bruce Watkins is a contributing writer to California Diving News and author of A Diver's Guide to Monterey County and A Diver's Guide to Northern California. He will be a featured speaker at SCUBA Show 2007, June 2-3 at the Long Beach Convention Center. © Copyright 2007, all rights reserve, by Saint Brendan Corporation, P.O. Box 11231, Torrance CA 90510, mail@cadivingnews.com. No part of this may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system/website, or transmitted in any form by any means without prior written permission of the publisher. IMPORTANT NOTICE: The contents of this publication/website are opinions of the individual writers. The publishers of California Diving News and its contributors assume no responsibility for any mishap claimed to be a result of use of this material. Diving is an adventure sport and with it comes inherent risks. Improper use of diving equipment or improper diving techniques may result in serious injury or, in extreme circumstances, death. Readers are admonished to use their own best judgement in each individual situation. |
