Winter 2024

104 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 2 4 Under the Sea The Unfathomable Depths of Monterey Bay National Mar ine Sanctuar y B Y D I NA RU I Z M onterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) exists in our collective presence like a life-long, reliable old friend. Some days, it unleashes passionate opinions with raging waves. Others, it soothes our souls, lapping at the shore with gentle undulations. It can appear quirky with stories- high whale “blows” mingling in sea breezes, and magical, clawed mini-creatures dancing through kelp beds. It’s just outside of the car window as you drive on Highway 1, or run errands around town. It’s there for a good cry, or a celebration. It’s a constant, full-of-life mystery, and even furry cuteness. Have you ever seen anything more adorable than a California sea otter? We humans who live around the sanctuary—all 276-miles of it—are fortunate. It’s considered one of the most robust aquatic homelands in the world, and is surely the crown jewel of the 17 National Marine Sanctuaries. “In my opinion, we are considered the gold standard of sanctuary management,” says Ginaia Kelly, chapter director of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, which is the nonprofit organization partner to the sanctuary. “I think those of us in the Monterey Bay Area take for granted the amount of biodi- versity that we encounter on any given day.We can be walking on a pier and look at sea otters on the kelp beds and seals under our feet.We can see dolphins swimming through the line up of surfers.We can look at whales breaching and feeding right off the shore. We can see millions of shearwater birds flying after sardines on the