Cleo Street Laguna Beach CA
Facilities: None. Taco Bell and KFC are right there on the corner of Cleo and Pacific Coast Highway. Additional restaurants ranging from inexpensive to Ouch are are available in Laguna Beach.
Directions: From 405 Freeway exit Laguna Canyon Road (133) South to Pacific Coast Highway (AKA: PCH, Coast Highway or Hwy 1). Turn Left onto PCH for about a mile. Cleo Street it the next light after Legion Street. There's a Taco Bell on the corner and Cleo Street is at a signal. Turn right and find any place to park you can.
Closest Dive Shop: Laguna Sea Sports at 925 Coast Highway in North Laguna Beach.
Average Depth: 40-60 feet Skill Level: Beginner to Intermediate
Local Laws: Snorkels, BC and dive partner required by Laguna Beach Ordnance.
Parking: Street Parking is in short supply here. There is very limited number of metered parking spaces so bring quarters. Access to beach is via a stairs, lots of them down to the sand.
Entry: Entry is normally made between the stairs and the Brown and White house named Waters Edge There are large rocks in the water just as you go in so look the site over carefully. This site is shallow for a bit off shore and at high tide the beach often disappears. After you get out past the rocks there is a lot of sand until you get near the wreck. There are some reefs here in 30-45 feet but most of the diving is around the wreck. This swim is on the long side and you do need to be alert for boat traffic and jet skis. If you swim straight our from the stairs on a heading of 220 degrees (try to stay centered on the Brown house) for 200 yards until the bell tower of the Laguna Hotel is almost due North you should be just about 30 yards short of it in 55 feet. The wreck is over 60 feet long and about 20 feet wide. If you find some pipes, you are nearby and should start searching, Please observe all safety rules when diving wrecks and be careful of surge and sharp metal edges. Do not despair if you don't find the wreck the first time, many have missed it.
To see more photos of this section of coast line go to: California Coastal Records Project
Links to other websites with descriptions of this dive site: Pacific Wilderness Calif Wreck Divers Laguna Sea Sports
Beach aerial photographs with permission of Kenneth Adelman Copyright (C) 2002-2004, California Costal Records Project, http://www.Californiacoastline.org
DISCLAIMER: P L E A S E N O T E:
The Sand Eaters is little more than a scheduling organization. Its sole purpose is to schedule a Sunday morning beach dive and notify those who have requested to be on the list. The Sand Eaters and its members are not responsible for you, your equipment, you're being teamed up with another diver, or your safety. You and you alone are solely responsible for your diving activities!
Your participation is voluntary. You are the only one who decides whether you dive. The Sand Eaters make no claim to the suitability of the location and are not responsible for dive conditions. Conditions change and there will be occasions where a chosen location will not be suitable for diving upon arriving at the site.
Webpage designed by Melvin Pasley of Pasley Realty http://www.pasleyrealty.com November 8th, 2005.