The premier shore diving sites in Washington are found throughout the Puget Sound area. We have included our favorites in and around Seattle, stretching as far South as Tacoma, Fox Island, and the Gig Harbor areas. All have unique inlets and coves, and are easily accessible shore diving opportunities for your enjoyment. Bear in mind the conditions vary considerably with the changing tides, currents and seasons of the year. Check with your local resource providers for the information to make your dive experience the safest and best possible. Enjoy!

Washington

San Juan County

Divers will travel far and wide to find the best diving. But those who live in the United States have plenty of great diving on their doorstep as well, with plentiful access to the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. From warm-water reefs to temperate seas, here are some of the top places to scuba dive in the United States.

United States

Great wall dive. Large lingcod in the area. Other aquatic life includes: starfish, sunstars, and crabs.

North side of Shaw Island (in the Wasp passage). Access from Friday Harbour by boat needed to reach dive site. Recommend "Island Dive" to take you to the site. 

Shaw Island

Bell Island

Great dive! Wall dive anywhere from 10-100 feet and see lots of lingcod, seastars,sunstars, and octopus. I would recommend "Island Dive" from Friday Harbor to take you to the site.

Need boat to access dive. Jump off boat and swim 20 feet to shore and descend.

Note: Exact location and GPS wanted :) Edit the dive site and use the GPS finder.

Harney Toe

White rocky wall close to shore, crevices to a shelf at 35 feet (10 meters), sloping to 60 feet (18 meters), kelp forest, blue starfish, red urchins, giant barnacles, big sea cucumbers, white sponges, yellow striped sea perch, Puget Sound king crabs, Irish lords, lots of small fish, experienced level

Reuben Tarte Park

Sandy bottom to 20 feet (6 meters), with purple starfish, orange sea cucumbers, pink anemones, bull kelp starts just outside the bay, boulders start at 20 feet (6 meters), ledges and caves at 50 feet (15 meters), shrimp, lingcod, swimming scallops, all levels

San Juan County Park (Smallpox Bay)

Not the easiest shore entry and some potentially devastating currents, hitting this site on slack is well worth the effort. A series of beautiful terracing walls, you can hit 200' within 50' of the shore. Rock fish, wolf eels, octopus, pacific king crab, walls of metridium anemones, the list goes on. If you aren't familiar with the area, it's well worth the trip.

Kelp forest, wall, mauve algae, dense invertebrate life, abalones, red urchins, giant barnacles, swimming scallops, giant octopus, rockfish, strong current, advanced level

Lime Kiln Point State Park

Cooper Reef is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Cooper Reef

If planned correctly this can be a easy dive and possibly one of the best shore dives in Puget sound. The quantity of life and COLORS of the life is epic. You must correctly hit the slack before an ebb current (using the correct current station). This wall is carpeted with invertebrates: bright yellow sponges, cucumbers, colorful buffalo sculpins, painted and striped stars, cup corals, the list goes on.

Research this site online and you will see you only dive this site on slack before an ebb current or apparently the current will make things impossible (both ways). Done correctly it is delightfully calm and easy with a smooth current around the time you turn around helping you come back. There a nearby current station for this very channel - use that. Hop into the water about 30 minutes before slack and surface swim west past the cabana. Just past that you should encounter the beginning of a bull kelp field which is  great place to drop. Continue west at maybe 45' and follow the wall which goes down to 75' or so. Worst case if for some reason things go wrong (with the current) swim directly to shore up the wall where it won't be as bad and allow you to get back.

On the way back if you have air you might enjoy continuing underwater through the bull kelp forest and eelgrass which can also have a different set of critters, crab, etc.

There is a public beach access before the gate to the private skyline cabana park. There is quite a bit of free street parking at the public access and along Cabana Lane but if full on a busy weekend there is also a pay lot towards the marina. There is a bathroom at the marina as well but you will need to ask for the code.

Skyline Wall is also known as Skyline Marina Wall.

Skyline Wall

Arachne Reef is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Arachne Reef

Johnstone Reef is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Johnstone Reef

Fulford Reef is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Fulford Reef

Brinn Rock is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Bell Island

Snorkeling and Scuba Diving at Bell Island