Kayaking at Elkhorn Slough is a super fun (and dog-friendly!) 2 hour activity in the Monterey Bay/Santa Cruz area. Read this post for more details on your Elkhorn Slough kayak rental!
I’ve driven by Elkhorn Slough (in Moss Landing) on the way to Monterey so many times but never stopped by to check it out. A couple weeks ago, we decided to rent kayaks and check out the wildlife.
WHY KAYAK ELKHORN SLOUGH?
Should you kayak Monterey Bay or Elkhorn Slough? We were debating between kayaking in Monterey Bay or Elkhorn Slough. Both are serviced by the same provider we used, and they are pretty close driving distance apart!
Paddling Monterey Bay will be right by the main attractions of Monterey Bay like the aquarium, Fisherman’s Wharf and Cannery Row areas. You will most likely see wildlife there like sea otters, birds, and maybe a dolphin or whale.
Elkhorn Slough is in a protected reserve. It’s much quieter and is likely a great place to see lots of sea otters, seals, and birds.
Both are great options and I think you would have really high chances of seeing wildlife. But in the end, we decided on Elkhorn Slough because it seemed to be a little more wild – I’ve been to the aquarium and the area of Monterey multiple times for example – and wanted a more nature-y escape for our paddle.
ELKHORN SLOUGH KAYAK DETAILS
We rented our kayaks from Monterey Bay Kayaks. A double kayak was $35 for the entire day. It was kind of windy that day so unfortunately, we could only kayak in the smaller channel area, but that was plenty of ground for us to see wildlife.
Even though we only kayaked for a little over an hour, we saw sea lions, sea otters, and pelicans! The animals are protected so you need to view them at a distance. Elkhorn Slough is also dog-friendly but you need to make sure your dog doesn’t disturb the wildlife. Our lab loves to swim and we knew he would want to jump into the water, so we personally didn’t bring him.
WHAT TO PACK
- Sea to Summit Drybag to keep your essentials
- Waterproof pouch for your phone: I bought this in Mexico before a snorkeling trip and it’s been one of my best purchases! It’s relatively cheap and lets go snap photos on the go in the water
- Tevas Sandals: I personally have switched over from Chacos to Tevas but any of water sandals will work. Flip flops can break easily and aren’t recommended
- Water! There is no water at the store so you’ll want to pack your own