Cold Water · United States
Puget Sound
Cold-water walls, wrecks and wolf eels in Puget Sound and Hood Canal
Photo: USEPA Environmental-Protection-Agency · Public domain
Puget Sound gives cold-water shore diving close to Seattle at Seacrest Cove 2 and Edmonds Underwater Park, wall dives at Sund Rock on Hood Canal, and The Boss, a wooden wreck in Blakely Harbor near Bainbridge Island. Wolf eels and giant Pacific octopus are the highlights at Sund Rock, and macro divers work the Alki Junkyard in West Seattle at slack tide.
About diving in Puget Sound
More than 75 shore-diving sites lie within an hour of Seattle, Seacrest Cove 2, Edmonds Underwater Park and Colvos Passage among them, while the sites around Blakely Harbor near Bainbridge Island, The Boss included, are reached by boat. The Salish Sea undergoes large tidal exchanges, and certain seasons limit access to some sites, so dives are planned from tide and current predictions.
Underwater the sound mixes walls, wrecks and kelp. Beyond the two main walls at Sund Rock, other walls drop past 30 m (100 ft), and schooling rockfish gather at the foot of the north wall. Cove 2 slopes over a silty bottom to depths past 40 m (130 ft), with submerged logs, pilings and sunken boats such as the Honey Bear. Close inspection turns up shrimp, nudibranchs and encrusting corals and algae.
The diving suits certified divers ready for cold water, which takes more gear and training than most warm-water locations. Seacrest Cove 2 has easy entries, is more sheltered from wind and currents than many shore sites, and is a common place for scuba classes in Seattle. Sund Rock is not a current-sensitive area and its main walls sit easily within recreational limits, while the deeper walls there draw technical divers.
Best time to dive Puget Sound
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime |
| Sea surface | 8°C46°F | 8°C46°F | 8°C46°F | 9°C48°F | 12°C54°F | 13°C55°F | 15°C59°F | 15°C59°F | 14°C57°F | 12°C54°F | 11°C52°F | 9°C48°F |
| Daytime high | 12°C54°F | 13°C55°F | 17°C63°F | 22°C72°F | 26°C79°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 31°C88°F | 28°C82°F | 22°C72°F | 16°C61°F | 12°C54°F |
| Rain | 170 mm6.7 in | 134 mm5.3 in | 141 mm5.6 in | 100 mm3.9 in | 70 mm2.8 in | 55 mm2.2 in | 18 mm0.7 in | 27 mm1.1 in | 63 mm2.5 in | 134 mm5.3 in | 188 mm7.4 in | 191 mm7.5 in |
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good |
| Sea surface | |||||
| 8°C46°F | 8°C46°F | 8°C46°F | 9°C48°F | 12°C54°F | 13°C55°F |
| Daytime high | |||||
| 12°C54°F | 13°C55°F | 17°C63°F | 22°C72°F | 26°C79°F | 29°C84°F |
| Rain | |||||
| 170 mm6.7 in | 134 mm5.3 in | 141 mm5.6 in | 100 mm3.9 in | 70 mm2.8 in | 55 mm2.2 in |
| Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime |
| Sea surface | |||||
| 15°C59°F | 15°C59°F | 14°C57°F | 12°C54°F | 11°C52°F | 9°C48°F |
| Daytime high | |||||
| 30°C86°F | 31°C88°F | 28°C82°F | 22°C72°F | 16°C61°F | 12°C54°F |
| Rain | |||||
| 18 mm0.7 in | 27 mm1.1 in | 63 mm2.5 in | 134 mm5.3 in | 188 mm7.4 in | 191 mm7.5 in |
2011–2025 averages. Sea surface: NOAA Coral Reef Watch, measured at the surface, so deeper water can run colder. Daytime high and rain: NASA POWER.
Diving runs all year; visibility is often best in fall and winter, while summer brings 16 hours of daylight.
Best months: January, February, October, November, December
Puget Sound water temperature and weather by month
The sea surface runs from 8 °C (46 °F) in February to 15 °C (59 °F) in August. Most rain falls from October to March, peaking at about 190 mm (7.5 in) in December; it stays largely dry from June to September. Daytime highs reach 31 °C (88 °F) in August and drop to 12 °C (54 °F) in December. The coldest water here is about 7 °C (45 °F), so pack a drysuit.
Dive types & marine life
Wolf eels and giant Pacific octopus are the highlights at Sund Rock. Adult market squid turn up at different times from late May through February, near Edmonds from around September and then in Elliott Bay along the Seattle shoreline. Harbor seals and California sea lions are commonly seen at Orchard Rocks in Rich Passage.
- Wall
- Wreck
- Muck & macro
- Kelp forest
- Night
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Nudibranchs
- Seals & sea lions
- Squid
- Macro critters
- Reef fish swarms
Best dive sites in Puget Sound
- 1
Seacrest Cove 2
West Seattle shore site in Seacrest Park, the most popular dive location in Seattle.
- 2
Sund Rock
Hood Canal shore site with two major walls at 21–24 m (70–80 ft) and wolf eels at the foot of the north wall.
- 3
Edmonds Underwater Park
Shallow shore site to about 14 m (45 ft), with several wrecks including the tugboat Triumph.
- 4
The Boss
Older wooden shipwreck 21 m (70 ft) long in Blakely Harbor, reached by boat.
- 5
Colvos Passage Marine Preserve
Protected marine area near Gig Harbor, known for its many wolf eels and an 8 m (25 ft) rock wall.
- 6
Keystone Conservation Area
Jetty and old military dock pilings, with a floating bull kelp bed on the jetty's southeast margin.
Site guides
A creviced rock wall with resident wolf eels and octopus
The most popular diving location in Seattle, entered off the beach
The large tugboat Triumph, and very large ling cod on the structures
Artificial reef
Rockfish, greenling and giant anemones packed onto revetment boulders
Artificial reef
Old Hood Canal Bridge slabs and I-beams turned into fish habitat
Wolf eels in the rock on the north and south walls
Wreck
A 21-metre wooden hull (70 feet) under a field of white plumose anemones
How to get to Puget Sound
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) has direct flights from most major US cities, and State Routes 509 and 99 connect it to West Seattle. Edmonds Underwater Park lies immediately north of the Edmonds ferry terminal on the Edmonds-Kingston route.
Photos from Puget Sound
Visitor7 · CC BY-SA 3.0
USEPA Environmental-Protection-Agency · Public domain
Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dive videos
Edmonds Underwater Park - Our Underwater Backyard - Bruce Higgins Trails - Annie Crawley · Annie Crawley on YouTube
Curious Giant Pacific Octopus Interacts with Scuba Diver in Puget Sound · Kyle Newton on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Why do dive plans change with the tide?+
Many sites in the Seattle area are current-sensitive and best dived around slack water, the brief window when currents drop near zero between tide changes. The offshore tip of the Keystone jetty has strong tidal currents.
How do divers reach the Bainbridge Island sites?+
Bainbridge Island is a 35-minute ferry ride from Seattle, and the dive sites around Blakely Harbor near the island, The Boss among them, are reached by boat.
Which site suits macro divers?+
The Alki Junkyard in West Seattle, dived at slack tide. Sea pens grow there, and market squid have been seen mating on the site.
Sources
- Diving in the United States — Wikivoyage
- Puget Sound — Wikivoyage
- Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve — Wikivoyage
- Sund Rock — Wikipedia
- Edmonds Underwater Park — Wikipedia
- Seacrest Cove 2 — Wikipedia
- Seattle Scuba Diving — PNW Diving
- Puget Sound Dive Photos — PNW Diving
- Sund Rock Dive Planning — PNW Diving
- Catching and cooking squid — Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife
- Scuba Diving Seattle: Puget Sound — Scuba Diving
- Frequently Asked Questions — Seattle Dive Tours
Photo credits
- Snow-capped Olympic Mountains rising behind the calm waters of Puget Sound with two boats crossing by Visitor7, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A giant plumose anemone with cream feeding tentacles extended on a Puget Sound rock wall by USEPA Environmental-Protection-Agency, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- A wolf eel peers out from a rocky den on the floor of Puget Sound by USEPA Environmental-Protection-Agency, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- Two scuba divers surface in open water off Brackett's Landing near Edmonds, Washington by Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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In The Logbook
- How far you can see underwaterOcean science · 12 min read
- When is slack water? Tides for diversOcean science · 7 min read
- Why is some sea green instead of blue?Ocean science · 8 min read
- Why you get cold diving, even in a wetsuitBody & health · 8 min read
- Cold-water diving: is it worth the drysuit?Cold water · 8 min read
- The best shore dives in the worldShore diving · 8 min read
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Cold-water walls, a Navy barge wreck and giant Pacific octopus