Discover Scientific Diving at the Cal Poly Pier Open House

SAN LUIS OBISPO — Bring the kids and the camera and tour the Cal Poly Pier in Avila Beach from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 16.

The spring open house will feature interactive displays, including special touch tanks full of live marine creatures, microscopes for viewing ultra-small sea creatures, a “Discover Scuba” experience and more.

Cal Poly professors and students will be on hand to explain their ongoing research into local marine life, including protecting Morro Bay's ecosystem, sustaining local fisheries, and mapping ocean currents on the Central Coast.

Tour the displays at your own pace and ask questions of the Cal Poly faculty and students. Bring a camera to take photos of sea creatures and the incredible coastal views from the pier.

The Cal Poly Pier is a little more than a half-mile long (1.2 miles round trip); displays will be located at the ocean end. This is a walking tour; safety rules require everyone wear closed-toe walking shoes (no flip-flops or high heels).

The Cal Poly Pier is located on Avila Beach Drive, just west of the San Luis Creek Bridge. Parking is very limited near the pier. Tour attendees are encouraged to park in the public parking lots in Avila Beach and walk to the pier.

The pier supports field research for Cal Poly’s Center for Coastal Marine Sciences and the SLOSEA program. Since its donation to the university in 2001 by Unocal, now Chevron Corp., the pier has been used by 1,500 students per year for classes or research activities.

For more information, call 805-756-6777. 

Note: Rain will cancel the event.