Which beach has less shark attacks? (San Francisco, Santa Cruz: live, dangerous, safe)

[supersonicgirl79135]

Hey guys, me and my family are going to San Francisco this summer. And we were planning on going to the beach, but my mom is worried about Shark attacks. So whats the best beach to go to, that great for families and doesn't have alot of sharks swimming around?

^_^ thanx everyone!

[sav858]

I be more worried about hypothermia and rip currents than shark attacks. You do realize you wont be able to swim in the water w/o a wetsuit right?

[mayorhaggar]

Yeaahhh...the Pacific (at least around here) is really not fun for swimming in even on the hottest day in summer.

You could try Ocean Beach in San Francisco or Stinson Beach in Marin, or the beaches in Pacifica. I've never really heard of any shark problems around here. Oceans are huge and sharks can appear anywhere but they do like some areas more than others. But unless you are from Alaska or Canada and used to cold water I wouldn't really focus on swimming here...

[bellalunatic]

Yes, the beach is good for a walk and getting the wind blowing through your hair but it is freakin' cold in the water.
Don't waste a day at the beach I'm not sure you (or anyone else) could stand it without a wetsuit, honestly.

[slo1318]

If you want to get in the water, you need to go down to Santa Cruz or Monterey. Ive the noticed the water in Monterey to be a bit warmer, I think because of the shallowness of the bay...

[gogetta]

To my knowledge beaches in Marin have more shark sightings than most other beaches in the area, stinson beach in particular. I don't understand why people say that people don't swim in the Ocean in the Bay Area or swim without wetsuits. That is not the case. Sure it might be colder water than SoCal, but on any give day there are hundreds of people who go for a dip (usually without a wetsuit) in Bay Area beaches. People surf, boogie board, etc...

[zitsky]

Hi supersonicgirl79135,

I think you will have a great time in California, but I want to give you some advice about what beaches to avoid and what to look out for. Shark attacks are relatively rare. Two significant causes of death (other than drowning) of people on California beaches are rogue/sneaker waves and rip currents. Never, never, never turn your back on the ocean. Here's a list (http://pages.prodigy.net/rhorii/bestswim.htm - broken link) of safe swimming beaches I found in the SF area. There are a lot of beaches I didn't even know about. BTW, relatively speaking there are not many shark attacks in California & the west coast, compared to other parts of the world. Sharks prefer deeper water but have been known to attack in shallow water in places like Florida. There are many beaches in the SF area that are beautiful and great for walking or picnics, but not good for swimming because of the cold or strong currents, or occasional sharks.

Tourists have drowned on San Francisco beaches because they were not familiar with the conditions, strong rip currents, low temperatures etc. You could go down to Pacifica but those aren't swimming beaches either (a lot of surfers in the water, strong currents, etc.). I'd highly recommend going down to Santa Cruz. It's beautiful there and there are better, safer beaches for swimming. As an alternate you could go north of San Francisco to Bolinas. There are many beaches along the coast south of SF that are beautiful and appropriate for picnics or walking. Be extremely careful getting in the water as currents can be dangerous. If you are worried about sharks, I would strongly avoid going in the water at Montara State Beach in Montara. It is a deep water beach and is known to have numerous shark sightings. There is one Yelp review that says it's safe because someone didn't see seals in the water. Absence of seals does not suggest an absence of sharks. I wish I could comment on that review and point that out.

Here's some info about dangerous conditions at Ocean Beach, quoting from the SF Ocean Beach entry on Wikipedia:

Surfers and other swimmers have died at Ocean Beach; as of May 2006, the most recent death is documented here [1] with the next-previous death taking place in January 2006 [2]. Prior to that, it had been about four years since anyone died at Ocean Beach. In 1998, a record seven people lost their lives here [3].

[sonarrat]

This is like asking what state you're more likely to win the lottery in.

[ExNooYawk]

Originally Posted by sav858

I be more worried about hypothermia and rip currents than shark attacks. You do realize you wont be able to swim in the water w/o a wetsuit right?

Geez, you need a wet suit in Malibu too.

[sav858]

Originally Posted by ExNooYawk

Geez, you need a wet suit in Malibu too.

Not during summer. Most Southern CA beaches warm up to around 70 in summer and don't require a wetsuit.