Diver Reviews:    (Please share your own experiences by clicking here!)

06/02/2008 Connor Sharp (Avg: 4.52 Review) - I went abalone diving, and the snorkeling conditions were great!

08/14/2007 Brian Handly (Avg: 3.73 Review) - Beautiful spot. No current, a little surge. Entry over large slippery wet rocks is a bit of a challenge. Saw lots of stars, urchins, anemones, rock fish, abalone and one big wolf eel completely visible (3 to 4 feet tip to tip). Recommend diving at high tide for greater depth and fewer rocks at entry.

06/18/2007 Chris 8 (Avg: 3.94 Review) - Parked in the south Gerstle Cove lot and walked down the trail to the farthest cove. Spear fished, and got four rockfish and a big perch. Vis was good, but surge was bad. I saw a few bigger abs, but they were hard to find since there was so much coral.

09/21/2006 David A (Avg: 4.48 Review) - Great dive site. Short surface swim, after an entry over a rocky beach, drops right into the middle of a marine preserve. The marine life is everywhere and makes for some excellent photo opportunities. Highly recommend this dive.

03/07/2006 Ryan H. (Avg: 4.10 Review) - Had a great time doing some free diving! Like the rest said, there is an abundance of sea life, more starfish you can shake a stick at. Ab's are huge around there, so can't wait for ab season to roll around. Gonna try at the mouth just outside the sanctuary. I would like to scuba this place sometime, sounds like fun!!

10/01/2005 Laszlo Nagy (Avg: 4.71 Review) - Great site. We found a lot of fish including ling cod over 40 inches. Good vis about 20'. The bottom is beautiful. I had about 10 dives in the month of September to 50'. A lot to see including a huge anchor at 47' straight out heading south. I heard there is a ship wreck out there, too.

08/09/2005 Matt Warren (Avg: 3.81 Review) - My 5th dive and it was spectacular! First since cert. Sea urchins as big as your head. Anenomies almost 10 inches across. Star fish of every size and color. Big colorful cods that just stare at you. And a small zebra striped fish we could not identify. The best hour I have spent "under" so far. Thanks to Ben at Bodega Bay Dive Shop for the tour.

11/22/2004 Brian Mathews (Avg: 3.56 Review) - Gerstle cove continues to be one of my favorite north coast dive spots. I usually scuba here and since it is a preserve, the animal life is awesome. There is a huge reef pretty far out directly in line with the cove which is home to some beautiful metridiums and cobalt blue encrusted sponge. I went ab diving here in November '04 and got 3 very nice abs just south of the edge of the protected area, but the only good ones were in 35 feet of water (it was high tide).

09/23/2004 Rick Leong (Avg: 3.48 Review) - Fun dive. A lot of life beneath the surface. Vis was about 15 to 20 ft. Did not feel the cold since my mind was preoccupied by the sites!

01/11/2004 Jesse Rorabaugh (Avg: 3.71 Review) - I dove here after a few disappointing hours of spear fishing at nearby Stillwater Cove. I was much more impressed with this site as a beginner spear fishing site. While I saw some big fish elsewhere they were too smart for me; here I had a chance. I was able to pull in several fish including a 30 inch Ling Cod in about 15 feet of water. I did see many abalone here, but they were out of season. As an aside note to clear up any confusion I have always seen this site named as 'Ocean Cove' in other lists of dive sites.

10/07/2003 Carl Bowers (Avg: 4.50 Review) - Friends and family spent the day on the rocks while the boys went free diving for abalone. Yes, we were in the South cove. Easy limits were taken by all. Visibility was about 18' and most of the abalone were deeper than 25'. It was a clear and warm day that would make a diver out of just about anyone!

08/31/2003 William L. Boldt (Avg: 4.70 Review) - This is my most reliable dive site on the Sonoma coast. When its too rough anywhere else to dive, this cove is the only place to get in. On a calm day, it's like a pond. Since the cove is a reserve, I usually do photography here. Visibility tends to be better here than most. Blue rockfish hide under the bull kelp canopy. Invertebrates are everywhere! I've seen more nudibranch here than anywhere else on the North Coast. Sea stars and urchins look like they have been dumped out of buckets across the bottom. Huge abalone sit boldly on the rocks. Be careful of urchins on the bottom and kayakers on the surface. If you want to hunt/pick abalone, there are several coves just to the north and south which are outside the preserve, though they are less protected from the surf.

06/30/2003 Eric 'Spoon' Carvaho (Avg: 3.17 Review) - Entry sucks with all the slippery rocks. Though since its in a protected cove, once you make it into the water, there are a few rock walls and caves that are interesting to scope out. Though I haven't had good vis here yet.

02/10/2003 Carl Bowers (Avg: 4.22 Review) - A two tank dive day: Water temperature was 57 degrees, 3' swells every 20 seconds and visibility was 20' or better. Morning air temperatures were colder than the water but warmed up to about 69 degrees by 2:00 PM. Great photo opportunities above and below the surface. The only tricky part about this dive site is the rocky beach which presents a challenge when fully geared and getting gear to and from the unloading area. Access is via a long, down hill one lane driveway; practice your backing skills. As always, once in the water, everything is a breeze with a nice sandy bottom and calm water to regroup. A Federal Preserve, the sea life is outstanding.

07/23/2002 Amy Galli (Avg: 4.14 Review) - Great place, low tide and mid-summer so visibility limited. Would like to dive again.

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Diver Averages for  Gerstle Cove  (1=worst, 5=best)

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