Puget Sound · United States · Artificial reef

Edmonds Underwater Park

The large tugboat Triumph, and very large ling cod on the structures

Photo: brewbooks from near Seattle, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0

Edmonds Underwater Park is a built dive site: a grid network of anchored ropes on the seabed leading to a variety of submerged features, in water no deeper than about 45 feet (14 m). A group of volunteers built it and still maintains it, and the result is one of the most popular shore dives in the state.

Also known as Bruce Higgins Underwater Trails.

Where it is and how deep

Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

47.8137° N, 122.3846° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

Entry is from the shore via moderate surface swims, and once you are down the park does the navigation for you. A grid network of anchored ropes runs across the bottom and leads to a variety of submerged features, so the dive becomes a question of which line to follow rather than one of holding a compass bearing across a bottom with no landmarks on it.

Nothing here is deep. The maximum is about 45 feet (14 m), which keeps the whole park inside a straightforward no-stop profile and makes the cold the limiting factor rather than the gas. The large tugboat Triumph is the best known of the structures, and the grid strings together enough sunken material that one dive only covers a part of it.

The park is built and maintained by a group of volunteers who meet every Saturday and Sunday at 9 am, and the structures they have put down hold the life. Very large ling cod sit on them, numerous large cabezon hold on the bottom nearby, and octopus turn up occasionally alongside many surf perch and rockfish. Gray whales have been spotted by divers at this site, which is a thing that happens rather than a thing to plan for.

Background

The park is built rather than found. A group of volunteers assembled it and still maintains it, meeting every Saturday and Sunday at 9 am to work on the trails and the structures. Among the sunken additions is the Lopez Pontoon, a concrete bridge fender with five interior chambers, put down on 4 November 2009 and now one of the features the rope grid leads to.

Marine life and season

Octopus & cuttlefish

Month-by-month season rating for Edmonds Underwater Park
Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Prime	Prime	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Prime	Prime	Prime

Season follows Puget Sound: Diving runs all year; visibility is often best in fall and winter, while summer brings 16 hours of daylight.

Know before you go

Just north of the ferry terminal is a 91-metre exclusion zone (300 feet), and it has to be respected on the surface swim as much as underwater.

Photos from Edmonds Underwater Park

brewbooks from near Seattle, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0
brewbooks from near Seattle, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0
brewbooks from near Seattle, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0

Dive videos

Edmonds Underwater Park - Our Underwater Backyard - Bruce Higgins Trails - Annie Crawley · Annie Crawley on YouTube

Edmonds Underwater Park - The Cathedrals · Patrick Briggs on YouTube

Questions divers ask

How deep is Edmonds Underwater Park?+

About 45 feet (14 m) at its deepest, so the whole park sits inside a straightforward no-stop profile. It is a shore dive entered via moderate surface swims, and the grid of anchored ropes on the bottom does most of the navigation for you.

What is there to see at Edmonds Underwater Park?+

Submerged structures placed and maintained by volunteers, including the large tugboat Triumph and the Lopez Pontoon. Very large ling cod and numerous large cabezon hold on and around them, octopus turn up occasionally, and gray whales have been spotted by divers at the site.