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Pirates Cove

San Luis Obispo County, California · United States

What have people found?

Festive tritonid, black and white dorid and modest cadlina turn up here more than at our other tide pools. Hilton's aeolid, opalescent nudibranch and salt-and-pepper doris are the usual finds. ~225 distinct species have been recorded here, across at least 3 years of observations.

What is the best time to visit today?

Download the app to see the 7-day schedule.

See low tide times at Pirates Cove for the next three days
  1. Sun, Nov 157:01 AM3.6 ftin the dark8:51 PM0.5 ft
  2. Mon, Nov 168:58 AM3.5 ftin the dark9:42 PM0.6 ft
  3. Tue, Nov 1710:31 AM3.1 ftin the dark10:26 PM0.8 ft

Every low tide each day, in local time at the shore.

Plan the week in Intertidal
  • A tide chart for every day, with the best window marked
  • Identify what you find from a photo
  • An alert when a good daylight low is coming

When do people visit?

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Most observations come from January and June.

What should you know before visiting?

Parking is about 0.3 miles away.
Arrive 45 minutes to an hour before low tide and leave as it turns. The water comes back faster than it left.
Grippy shoes beat sandals. Wet rock and algae are more slippery than they look. Tide pool safety
A tide pool is a fragile place. Look and photograph, take nothing. The tidepooling code

What lives at Pirates Cove?

Species records from iNaturalist

Hilton's AeolidPhidiana hiltoni
Opalescent NudibranchHermissenda opalescens
Salt-and-pepper DorisAegires albopunctatus
Monterey DoridDoris montereyensis
San Diego DoridDiaulula sandiegensis
Striped Shore CrabPachygrapsus crassipes
Festive TritonidTritonia festiva
Red Sponge DoridRostanga pulchra
Sunburst AnemoneAnthopleura sola
Black and White DoridAcanthodoris rhodoceras
Modest CadlinaCadlina modesta
Ochre Sea StarPisaster ochraceus
Dwarf Mottled HenriciaHenricia pumila
Yellow-spotted CadlinaCadlina flavomaculata
Giant KelpMacrocystis pyrifera
Scan this tide pool on your next visit.

Every organism named, every visit logged to your journal.