monterey bay national marine sanctuary

There are plenty of places in the area to enjoy views of the coast and the wildlife. It's a great area to spot seals, otters and lots of birds. There are nice beaches throughout, where you can park and explore or just relax and enjoy the wonder of nature.

Highway 1 provides great access to the hundreds of miles of coastline in this sanctuary. We stopped at many locations and were impressed by so many working to protect the animals. Volunteer docents roamed the paths overlooking the elephant seal beaches providing interesting tidbits. The views are gorgeous and my wife has thousands of photos to prove it.

This aquarium is top notch. The only other one close is the Shedd aquarium in Chicago. The exhibits are beautiful. We love the large tanks with a variety of fish. Our favorite things were the jelly fish exhibit , the sea otters, and the deep ocean tank with the large fish. It's worth the trip. My daughters and wife all walked out happy.

A biologist's dream! Lots of animal life in the tide pools, and the plant life is abundant! The ocean is a beautiful aquamarine color.

The Marine Sanctuary is all the water from the beach, the entire Bay and out to sea several miles. On whale watching trips this weekend we saw Gray Whales, Orca whales, Risso's Dolphins, Pacific White Sided Dolphins, Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Sea Otters swimming and eating, a huge jelly fish, and different types of birds like Pelagic Cormorants, Brandts, Surf Scooters, Eared Grebes, Murres, Auklets, and a Black Footed Albatross! (which I was told was rare until the summer months).If you don't like boats you can see see most of this and Sandpipers, Snowy Egrets, Great Blue Herons and many different type of Gulls from the trail that goes from the wharf area all the way to Pacific Grove.A great place to see a ton wildlife in the wild and not behind glass or in a cement tank. Take the time to see all the wildlife in nature.

We were there in December and got to see the stragglers still feeding in the bay. A trip worth taking and of course, the bay seals is a sight to behold. Very raucous bunch but funny.

If you want to see lots of wildlife, come visit this amazing coastline. Seals, sea lions, otters, whales, dolphins, seabirds, tide pool creatures and jellies galore await you on its shores. There is so much to see and do. Visit montereybay.noaa.gov/visitor/

Spent two days exploring the Bay. From Moss Landing to the Marine reserve outside the Aquarium.Beautiful weather, even in November. We were right in the middle of a pod of about 1000 Rizzo Dolphins. The Red Nettle jellyfish hovered throughout the water column. Great flocks of Pelicans in the marsh areas. Otters close enough to take great photos of....What a great trip!

Just could not get enough hang time with the otters out in the Bay. Ocean was calm but rolling, kelp was thick and water was cold. Could not ask for a better experience with nature.

Take a day and spend it on the bay! Kayaking or whale watching is amazing. Whale watching is spectacular -- so many types of animals living in & swimming through the MBNMS. Enjoy!

Watching Dolphins play while eating breakfast is a great way to start the day. There is such abundant wildlife, from the otters to the sea lions, the whales, the birds and so many others that the kids can really get a good idea of why we need to protect the oceans. The whale watch was great but so was sitting on the beach just watching what was happening.

we stayed on the Bay and the restaurants all have tables looking on.....I could have stayed in them all day just observing all the activities! Rich with sea life and so calm and peaceful. nature at its best!

The area is rich in wildlife. From the shore there are lots of birds. On a whale watching trip we saw Risso's dolphins. Pacific small; whirt Dolphins lots of sea lions and 30 - 40 humpback whales feeding in the rich waters of the Bay

We went out on a whale watching tour and were amazed at the abundant life obvious everywhere in the water. Lots of whales, jellyfish, porpoises, and sea lions. It gave us hope for the future.

We visited on a beatiful sunny day, not to warm, not to cool in August. All the local seals and seabirds were having fun in the water. The kelp beds were rich with activity. Couldn't be better.