Introduction
Monterey Bay is located on the coast of California and is a bay of the Pacific Ocean. The bay is located towards the south of San Francisco with San Jose towards its south and it is in between the cities of Santa Cruz and Monterey. It is a home to different marine mammals such as sea otters, harbor seals and bottlenose dolphins. It is also a breeding site for elephant seals. Killer whales can also be found on the coast and especially during the gray whales migration period. Other species such as fish, sharks, birds and sea turtles also reside in the bay. Kelps are also found in the bay and it is turning into a kelp forest. Monterey bay vacations can be the perfect way to spend your weekend. Therefore plan your Monterey bay vacations ahead.
History
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was the first person who discovered Monterey bay. He named it Bahia de los Pinos because the area was rich in pine trees and he discovered this when he was touring the peninsula. After him in 1595, Sebastian Rodriguez Cermeno went across the bay and renamed it to Bahia de san Pedro. However, the present name was coined by Sebastian Vizcaino; he named it Puerto de Monterey in respect of Conde de Monterrey who was the viceroy of New Spain at that time. Other names of places near Monterey were named related to the bay because of their nearness to the bay such as the presidio of Monterey, city of Monterey and others. The bay has one of the largest underwater canyons called the Monterey canyon which begins off the coast in the center of the bay. Thus, to visit this you must plan Monterey bay vacations.
Features
If you are planning to spend your weekend on Monterey bay vacations then the first thing you must visit is the Monterey bay aquarium which was founded in 1984 and is visited by around 1.8 million visitors every year. It has a huge number of plants and animals. The aquarium receives fresh ocean water through pipes which is continuously pumped into it through the Monterey bay. The aquarium contains stingrays, jellyfish, sea otters and many other different kinds of marine species which can be viewed from above the waterline. It is one of the few aquariums which have a Blue fin and a yellow fin tuna. It uses kreisal tank to display its jellyfish. The tank has a circular flow which supports and accordingly suspends the jellies. The only mammal the aquarium has inhabited is the otter. Another place which you must visit is the Monterey bay botanical garden which is particularly new and is located towards northern California. It was founded by the founder of the world botanical gardens Hawaii, Walter L. Wagner.
Tips and comments
Spending the weekend at Monterey bay can be a perfect week to close your week and is a perfect way to spend your Monterey bay vacations because it is an amazing place to visit with kids. It has many different recreational areas such as the ones stated above. If you are a sea life lover, then this place can be a paradise for you because it has almost every sea species you could think of. Therefore, it is a good idea to visit the place with your family or friends.
