Our Oceanic Outpost
Tucked away at Port San Luis in Avila Beach, just a few miles from the main campus, Cal Poly owns a distinctive gateway to a world of undersea discovery. The Cal Poly Pier is one of the nation’s few university research piers, giving students and faculty unparalleled access to the marine environment of the Central Coast.
Donated by Unocal in 2001, the 3,000-foot-long facility features classroom space, a flow system that pumps seawater directly into a wet lab and aquarium, equipment that monitors weather and undersea conditions, and spectacular 360-degree views of San Luis Obispo Bay.
Check out more Learn by Doing stories from the Cal Poly Pier:
Adelle Wilkin (left) and Sophie Short (right) spot a pod of humpback whales breaching off the coast of Oceano during a recent audio equipment deployment.
The Sound of the Sea
In their own words, two marine science students describe how they’re using audio data analysis to learn more about our undersea neighbors.
Andres Rocha Jayasinha
De Ir Hacia Adelante
One student finds his purpose introducing high schoolers from a Central Valley community to the marine sciences.
One Shell of a Research Project
At the end of the Cal Poly Pier is a lab full of marine life — and student researchers.
