NPS photo

Overlooking the Golden Gate Straits

The Pacific Ocean flanks almost the entire length of Golden gate National Recreation Area. Seen from the beach or a sea cliff, the ocean seems to have a uniform sameness, a vast monotony. Yet the ocean is a patchwork of habitats that reach from the deepest offshore waters, to where the sea meets and blends with the land in bays, lagoons, marshes, beaches, and tide pools.

Golden Gate's boundaries only extend about a quarter mile offshore, but through the Gulf of the Farallones and Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuaries, not only the land but the ocean waters of the park are protected. Administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (a different agency within the Department of Commerce), a myriad of sea life pass through these sanctuaries. Gray whales follow the continental shelf 35 miles offshore. Here cold, nutrient-rich water upwells from the deep ocean and crustaceans that are the staple of the whale’s diet. Pacific gray whales travel south to Baja each fall to give birth to their young, and journey northward to Alaska each spring to feed.

The Farralon Islands, the Golden Gate, and Ano Nuevo Island form what is termed the “bloody triangle,” one of the largest concentrations of great white sharks in the world. Common murres dive for sardines, Elephant Seals haul out, and sea birds flock on the rocky islands. Closer to shore surf scoters, cormorants, grebes, and scaup gather seasonally. Harbor seals and California Sea Lions haul out to rest, and hunt for top smelt and surf perch.