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Waves crashing off the coast of Monterey Bay

A look at what winter storms bring to shore

A close-up of an assortment of mussel shells, snail shells, bleached corraline algae, and rocks washed up on a beach

What's washed up on the beach?

Winter is an exciting time to explore Monterey Bay’s beaches. Storms passing over the Pacific Ocean combined with seasonally extreme tides can create the ideal conditions for beachcombing. But before you go out adventuring, always remember to be prepared!

Winter storms bring energy to the coast

During winter months, powerful storms sweep across the Pacific Ocean often bringing several days of rain and strong winds to California’s central coast. This driving wind energy also creates ocean swell, generating large waves that crash along the coastline. The pounding surf scours and rips off most anything attached to the rocks, including algae (or seaweed), mussels, and limpets, both above and below the surface of the water.

The shoreline is also affected by water running off the land, as each successive storm sends torrents of rainwater down streams, rivers, and storm drains. Eventually, this muddy rainwater makes its way into the ocean, carrying its accumulated contents along with it, like wood debris and trash.

A large ocean wave breaks onto a small island of rocks, tossing a spray of water behind as it crashes

Winter storms often bring large waves that crash along the Monterey Bay coastline. The pounding surf can rip off animals and algae that were attached to the rocks and wash them ashore.

Winter brings extreme tides

Wintertime is also when we experience the most extreme fluctuation in the tides along the Central Coast. Earth’s tides are influenced by the gravitational pull of the sun and moon, and is generally strongest during new and full moons, when the Earth, moon, and sun are all in alignment.

Because the moon's also generally closest to the Earth in its rotation in winter, we typically see our highest (and in turn, our lowest) tide heights of the year. The changes are most dramatic during king tides, when we experience the greatest difference between the highest high tide and lowest low tide of the day. Sometimes, the tidal exchange can be more than eight feet!

During high tide, much of what’s been churned up by waves and turbulent waters from the storms gets deposited high up on the shoreline. As the water recedes, some of this material remains behind, while the rest gets carried back toward the ocean. Over time, this creates “bathtub rings,” or lines of marine debris and materials on the shore.

A beach landscape at sunset has two dark lines extending along the sand mirroring the shoreline. Upon closer inspection, the lines contain thousands of washed-up mussel and snail shells

High tides bring what’s been churned up underwater and ripped off rocks and deposits them high up on the beach. As the tide recedes, lines of marine debris containing snail and mussel shells are left behind.

What's washed ashore this winter?

These tide lines often contain the treasures we seek while beachcombing. What washes up depends on the combination of weather and tides, but also the nearby underwater environment.

And that’s part of the joy of a beachcombing adventure. You never know what you’ll find!

Come join us for a beach field trip!

Our team visited Sunset State Beach in January 2024 to see what had washed up after a winter storm — look what we found!

Helpful tips for heading to the beach

If you’re interested in checking out what Monterey Bay’s beaches have to offer in the winter, remember to be prepared!

  • Check the weather. A great time to go is during the lull between storm systems.
  • Pay attention to the tides. It’s best to explore during low tide, and be mindful of the rising tide.
  • Be careful. Wear safe footwear and watch where you step. Explore with your eyes and don’t take anything home.
  • Respect the ocean. Never turn your back to the water as waves can be unpredictable.
  • Low tides make this a fantastic time of year to go tidepooling, too. Be sure to check out our tidepooling tips.

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