Morro Bay
Morro Bay (San Luis Obispo County) · near Morro Bay · Central Coast
Kayaking & SUP · Wildlife Watching
At a glance
- Best season
- Year-round · Best April–October · Outgoing tides near Morro Rock require caution
- Best season
- Year-round; peregrines nest spring; shorebirds peak fall–winter
- Open year round
- Yes
Permits and booking
- Permit
- No permit. Public launch at Morro Bay State Park Marina ($) and Embarcadero waterfront (free for hand-carried craft). Kayaks must stay within the bay — do not attempt ocean passage through the inlet.
What is here
- Wildlife
- Sea otters (resident) · Harbor seals · Great Blue Herons · Snowy Egrets · Brown pelicans · Peregrine falcons (nesting on Morro Rock) · Dungeness crab
- Wildlife
- seals-otters · birds
- Species
- Peregrine falcons, southern sea otters, brown pelicans, shorebirds, herons
- Amenities
- Peregrine falcons on Morro Rock · Sea otters in the bay · Globally important estuary · Kayak & waterfront viewing
- Best for
- Estuary otters, falcons & shorebirds
- Features
- Nesting peregrine falcons · Sea otters in the harbor · Major shorebird estuary · Landmark Morro Rock
Worth knowing
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
- Hazards
- Do not climb Morro Rock (protected/sacred) · Windy waterfront · Tidal mudflats · Keep distance from otters
Kayaking & SUP detail
- Water types
- estuary · protected-bay
- Exposure
- sheltered
- Sup friendly
- Yes
- Wetsuit
- 3mm recommended · Water 56–64°F · Warmer than NorCal, cooler than SoCal
- Tidal note
- Outgoing tides near the bay mouth and Morro Rock are 'quite strong and especially dangerous' per local outfitters. Stay inside the estuary on ebb tide. The estuary interior (Morro Bay State Park marina to the north) is well-protected and tide-tolerant for most paddles.
- Intl tip
- Morro Bay's Embarcadero is one of Central Coast California's most enjoyable waterfront streets — genuine fishing fleet, seafood restaurants, and the rock backdrop make it distinctive. Giovanni's Fish Market is the local institution. Montaña de Oro State Park (the mountain biking destination we cover in the MTB guide) is 7 miles south — combine a morning kayak with an afternoon MTB ride for a complete SLO County outdoor day.
Wildlife Watching detail
- Viewing
- shore
- Effort
- easy
- Habitat
- bay-estuary
- Sighting
- 4
- Viewing notes
- A rich estuary under a landmark volcanic rock — nesting peregrine falcons on Morro Rock, sea otters in the bay, and thousands of shorebirds on a globally important wetland
- Intl tip
- A rich estuary under a landmark volcanic rock on the San Luis Obispo coast. Morro Rock is a protected peregrine falcon nest site (and sacred to the Salinan and Chumash) — watch the falcons wheel from below in spring. Southern sea otters raft in the bay off the Embarcadero, and the mudflats host thousands of shorebirds, pelicans, and herons (peak fall–winter). Watch from the waterfront, by kayak, or on estuary trails. Easy and family-friendly — don't climb the rock, keep clear of otters.
The guide
Morro Rock is one of California's most recognizable geological landmarks — a 576-foot volcanic plug rising from the Morro Bay s…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Morro Bay — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 35.366, -120.8494