Cabo Pulmo
Once just a simple, picturesque fishing village on the far south of the peninsula, Cabo Pulmo is now a national marine park and UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is one the premier dive destinations in the Sea of Cortez. Protected as a no-fishing area since 1995, the marine life has prospered here, and is living evidence of how conservation can maintain and improve a marine ecosystem. At 20,000 years old, the reef structure is in fact the oldest along the west coast of North America, and it is the only living coral reef in the Sea of Cortez, making diving here a truly unique experience.
There are 10 marked dive sites in the park, some are shallow reefs that are great for beginners and searching for turtles, groupers, and macro life such as seahorses, nudibranchs and frogfish; others are advanced blue water dives surrounded by mobula rays or swirling schools of jacks. But one of the main highlights of diving at Cabo Pulmo has to be the regular encounters with abundant bull sharks which are clearly thriving in the MPA. Blacktip and lemon sharks are also frequently seen in the area.
C-59 Wreck
Close to the Fang Ming, the C-59 is a former US Navy minesweeper, later used by the Mexican Navy, sunk as an artificial reef at around 20 metres (65 feet). Unlike the Fang Ming, it lies on its side, which gives it a different character. The C-59 has also developed into a thriving reef system, with Cortez Angelfish working the exterior passageways and fish stacking up around the structure at every depth. These two wrecks make an excellent double-tank day. Both are beginner-friendly, and more experienced divers find plenty of interest in swim-throughs and the reef life that has colonised every surface, offering a different perspective on Sea of Cortez diving.
El Bajo
This is an advanced site located near Cabo Pulmo. It is a group of 3 submerged peaks that rise up between 50-80 ft (18-25m), so it is possible to dive at much greater depth here. The central peak is the most commonly visited as it is the shallowest and allows for longer dive times. The key attraction here are the large schools of scalloped hammerhead sharks that circle these pinnacles, another diving highlight of this part of the Sea of Cortez. Sometimes groups of up to 100 individuals can be encountered. Other visitors include whale sharks, swordfish and giants mantas, huge schools of predator fish like amber jacks, and residents of the rocky peaks such as moray eels and octopus. Another great place to encounter hammerheads in Baja is Las Animas.
Fang Ming Wreck
On 18 November 1999, the impounded Chinese cargo ship Fang Ming was deliberately sunk as an artificial reef near Isla Ballena after being seized by Mexican authorities in a migrant-smuggling case. 25 years on, the Fang Ming is one of the most distinctive wreck dives in Mexico. The wreck rests at 21 metres (70 feet), making it accessible to open water divers. It is a colourful wreck, thick with coral and sponges. Seagrass carpets the interior floors. A morning dive is recommended as sunlight cuts through gaps in the hull, illuminating the inside and showcasing moray eels, resident sea lions, and turtles resting on the upper deck. The wreck is open and not intimidating, making it a favourite for wreck diving novices who want to add variety to their diving in the Sea of Cortez.
Land's End
Located at the southern tip of the Baja peninsula near Cabo San Lucas, Land's End is a unique dive site where the waters of the Sea of Cortez and the Pacific Ocean meet. Here, divers can often witness underwater sand falls, a phenomenon where sand cascades down rock formations as if underwater waterfalls. The site is home to schooling baitfish, tuna, and sea lions. The currents can be variable, creating dynamic conditions for an interesting drift dive. It is also a site frequently visited by day boats from the Cabo area, making it an accessible site for those looking to dive the Sea of Cortez without committing to a liveaboard.
La Paz
This region of the Sea of Cortez is known as the best place for divers to see resident whale sharks. There are close to 100 animals, mostly juveniles of 15-30 ft (5-9m) long, but adults do frequent the area too, especially when the plankton blooms are strongest, making it a prime spot for diving in the Sea of Cortez. The region of the Bay of La Paz is known as ‘El Mojote’ and has been a protected area since 2019. Only swimming is allowed in the area, and a strictly enforced limit to the number of visiting boats at any one time is maintained. Another region of Baja California that is known to attract whale sharks is Bahía de los Ángeles, towards the northern end of the peninsula, where you can see them underwater.
La Reina
Further offshore from La Paz, La Reina is a rocky pinnacle exposed to open water currents, which drive an incredible abundance of marine life. Depths range from around 8 to 30 metres (25 to 100 feet). The site features groupers hiding in crevices, sea fans, brain corals, and garden eels swaying on the sandy bottom. Large schools of fish hang in the current, feeding. This is a site that rewards divers with dynamic conditions and the ever-present chance of encountering passing manta rays. The nearby site, La Reynita, offers similar topographies and is often dived in conjunction. This is a site best suited to more experienced divers looking for a more challenging dive in the Sea of Cortez.
Los Islotes
An iconic dive destination near La Paz, Los Islotes is home to a breeding colony of roughly 600 to 650 California sea lions. The site consists of 2 small rocky islets jutting out of the sea. Below the waterline, the walls are adorned with golden cup corals and other marine life, with dense schools of sardines and colourful tropical fish like king angelfish and yellow surgeonfish. The main attraction is, undoubtedly, the sea lions, especially the playful pups that are known to interact with divers. They will often circle, tug at fins, and show immense curiosity, making for an unforgettable and joyful dive experience. This is a shallow site suitable for divers of all levels and is often described as the highlight of a trip to the region, a must for anyone keen to experience the best Sea of Cortez scuba diving has to offer.
Midriff Islands
This group of 30 islands in the north of the Sea of Cortez was once dubbed the “Galapagos of Mexico” and, once you visit, it is easy to see why. This is a wilderness area of desert mountains and beaches. There is little in the way of human development here, and countless sea birds clearly appreciate that fact. There are sea lion colonies and 8 types of whale are encountered here. What makes the region so special is the 5,000 ft (1,600m) deep sea trench that cuts through the islands. This channel brings nutrient rich, deep water, upwellings for the local fish to feast on. This in turn attracts some of the world’s largest marine animals, in blue and fin whales, humpback whales, California gray whales, sperm whales, manta rays, Humboldt squid and leatherback sea turtles. For those who want to dive the Sea of Cortez in its most raw and wild form, this is the region to head for.
One of the first spots to dive on a northern Sea of Cortez liveaboard cruise is Angel Island. It is a great site for sea lions that may swoop and swim around you like the playful puppies of the ocean that they are. When at the surface the smell from the bird droppings that cake the rock of La Vela, meaning 'the sail', encourages a swift submersion. You will descend to the base of the rock which slopes to deeper than 30m. While the Gulf of California is famed for large animal encounters, it also delivers on a macro scale. That is what makes diving in the Sea of Cortez special compared to other locations on Mexico's Pacific coast. Here you can spot various different nudibranchs such as Chromodoris baumanni, Elysia diomedea, Flabelliina iodinea and Glossodoris sedna which is indigenous to the northern part of the sea, although it has been introduced elsewhere. Unlike other places, you might spot dozens if not hundreds of nudibranchs of any one species.
Look out for mobula rays, sometimes hard to miss when traveling in large schools. You may have seen documentaries featuring the Sea of Cortez's mobula rays breaching and soaring into the sky. There is no guarantee of such behavior here but these and other ray species can be sighted at La Vela.
Hundreds of boobies rest and ease their bowels atop Punta de Pedro Martir, another pre-dive delight to the senses in the Sea of Cortez. They seem to stare quizzically at these strange humans jumping in the water as they waddle in an ungainly fashion over the rocky land. You will most likely drop in here in shallow waters and descend to between 8 and 10m before then making your way down a steep wall to deeper sections of the site at 30 to 40m. Throughout the shallows sea lions are likely to play joyfully all around you, darting this way and that with incredible ease. Particularly fearless and fun are the juveniles, of which there are many in August and September. The wall can play host to jewel morays and Panamic morays. They are among 16 species of moray eel in the Gulf of California and they are often spotted, not only gaping from their holes but also free-swimming.
Divers may also come across seahorses here such as the Pacific seahorse in and around the wall where innumerable blennies poke their heads out, octopus skulk from crevice to crevice hunting, and swarms of little reef fish dance around. These can include Panamic sergeant majors, Cortez damselfish and Beaubrummel damselfish. Occasionally dense clouds of krill may be present bringing with them the promise of whales.
'Las Animas' is named after the church bells which ring to summon lost souls and 'El Lavadero' translates as "the washing machine". When diving "the washing machine of lost souls" it is easy to imagine that each of the thousands of schooling jacks represents a soul as their sheer mass of numbers surrounds you and blocks out the light. Hammerhead sharks and tunas join them in the blue, meaning there is always plenty of big stuff to look out for when diving here. The topography consists of a pinnacle featuring a series of shelves and caverns that you can explore on the look-out for creatures as diverse as giant jawfish, sea horses and horn sharks. This site is a firm favorite among Sea of Cortez diving aficionados, yielding not only many different sightings but also being among the most colorful dive sites in the area.
