The first ocean dive for many South Bay and greater Los Angeles SCUBA open water students is Veteran's Park in Redondo Beach. Even if the surf's up, the breakwater and jetty keep the wave action low at this dive site, so for a first time shore dive, it's about as easy as it gets.

The sandy bottom slopes gently till the drop-off for Redondo Canyon, one of the five submarine canyons in Southern California. You can dive pretty much as deep as you want to—more interesting critters are in the canyon, but you can see plenty of sandy bottom animals even in very shallow waters. I've seen bat rays, halibut, sand dollars, lobster, pipefish, and more. If you have a fishing license and are a hunter, you can find lobster near the rocks of the jetty. Just be aware—there are often Fish and Game wardens around, checking to make sure your catch is legal.

The real fun, however, is to be had at night. Because of the easy surf entry/exit, the geography (follow the sand ‘up,’ perpendicular to the ripples) and the wildlife to be seen in the canyon, this is a great spot for a night dive. The highlight is when the squid are mating, and there are all sorts of squid egg cases all over the place.

Dive N Surf and other dive shops have regular dives at this location—check with the dive shops to see when the dive is scheduled. Sandeaters also does occasional dives here.