El Refugio Beach

Palm Trees and Kelp Beds

By Linda Lee Walden

Visitors to this inviting cove a few miles from Santa Barbara, California, understand immediately why it's named El Refugio, "the refuge" in Spanish. The crescent-shaped beach of tawny sand is lined by stately palms. Out of the deeply cut hills that define the mile-long cove, a mountain-fed creek gurgles into the Pacific. This tropical image is framed by the towering Santa Ynez mountains to the north and the craggy silhouettes of the Channel Islands seaward, completing the fantasy vision of a secluded island oasis.

Before the arrival of the Spaniards, the cove was a major ocean access point for the local Chumash Indians. From its gently sloping sands they launched boats, fished and gathered shells. Artifacts of their vanished culture have been found buried in the surrounding sea cliffs. Today, as a California State Beach, El Refugio park is enjoyed by campers, anglers, surfers, hikers and, of course, scuba divers.

In addition to being a popular shore dive, El Refugio beach is the first choice of most scuba instructors in the Santa Barbara region for open-water training. Among its assets they list easy access, consistently good water conditions, interesting underwater sights and convenient support facilities.

Land access for diving at El Refugio couldn't be easier. While sea cliffs make other entry points along the coast difficult to get to and from, especially when lugging scuba gear, El Refugio park is at sea level. A paved road leads to ample parking just behind the palm-lined beach. Divers gear up on the adjacent lawn, at nearby picnic tables or in their cars. Depending on the tide, the water is never more than a 100-foot/30-m walk.

Beyond the palms, the sand slopes gently into the wide surf zone and continues to drop off gradually to a depth of no more than 30 feet/9 m at the outer edge of the cove. This topography allows for easy entries and exits, and shallow diving , features that make El Refugio a particularly good site for students to complete Open Water certification dives, as well as for teaching rescue and specialty courses. Winter wave patterns at California beaches typically remove sand, exposing water-smoothed stones that are soon reburied as the sand returns in the spring. However, even after this past season's El Ni96o-driven storms, El Refugio's beach remains mostly free of obstructions.

Water conditions at El Refugio are quite favorable for diving. The Pacific coast faces southwest for 150 miles/242 km from just north of Los Angeles to Point Conception, about 30 miles/48 km northwest of El Refugio beach. The Channel Islands lie just a few miles offshore across the Santa Barbara channel. With these barriers to both northerly and southerly swells, there's less chance of having to cancel dive outings due to high surf, and visibility consistently averages 10 to 15 feet/3 to 5m. Water temperatures at diving depth range from the mid-50s (?F)/mid-teens (?C) in January and February to the mid-60s (?F)/high-teens (?C) in late summer.

Underwater, students and recreational divers are treated to a healthy forest of macrocystis , giant kelp. This rapidly growing brown algae provides habitat for an amazingly rich collection of marine creatures. Divers report various nudibranchs and sea stars, chestnut cowries, kelp crabs, octopus, lobsters, sea hares and vase sponges. Common fishes include garibaldi, sheephead, rockfish, surf perch, starry flounder and California halibut.

The main kelp bed lies to the east of the stream outflow, where large boulders and piles of smaller rocks provide the stable substrate necessary for the kelp's holdfasts to attach. The rock outcropping begins approximately 150 feet/46 m off the beach and runs along the shore to the east end of the bay in 15 to 20 feet/5 to 6 m of water.

At the west end of the cove, a rocky reef extends from the headland out across the bay. Swimming from the entry point west of the stream, divers pass a large sand-dollar bed before reaching the reef.

As divers progress toward the seaward edge of the cove, they encounter a series of flat shale ledges. These create mini-walls up to 8 feet/2.4 m in height on the otherwise gently sloping sand bottom. Diving El Refugio is always interesting, as the size and location of ledges, exposed rock outcroppings and kelp beds change with the seasons.

El Refugio is a favorite diving location because of its convenient facilities as well. There are three restrooms with changing areas and telephones adjacent to the parking areas. Freshwater showers are provided near the shoreline, as well as at one of the restroom buildings. The on-site store offers food service and groceries. An attractive picnic area, and 85 sites for overnight tent and recreational vehicle camping encourage park users to make multi-day visits.

Local dive centers use El Refugio as their primary shore training site because it is ideal for introducing Open Water students to ocean diving conditions. Many follow this with an all-day boat trip to the Channel Islands to complete training. Recreational divers from up and down the coast dive El Refugio for its diversity of marine life, often staying overnight.

When not exploring the undersea life of El Refugio's bay, divers might catch a glimpse of migrating gray whales. These gentle giants pass close to shore between November and January on their southerly journey, and again on their way north in the spring.

If you happen to camp at El Refugio between March and September on the night following the full or new moon, you'll be treated to the unusual sight of the grunion running. On the high tide, the female fish bury their eggs on the beach and are swept back to the ocean on the retreating tide. You are permitted to catch as many as you can eat , but only in season and only with your bare hands!

Practicalities

El Refugio State Beach is 23 miles (37 km) northwest of Santa Barbara along U.S. Route 101. The entry fee for daily use is $8 per vehicle. Camping is $16 per night from December to February and $21 the rest of the year.

The 911 Emergency Medical Services system is in effect in Santa Barbara County. For more information, call El Refugio State Beach at (805) 968-1033 or contact one of the dive centers in Santa Barbara, Goleta, Oxnard or Ventura.