There is no place really like it. With the hustle and bustle of Cabo San Lucas, then around the corner complete wilderness of Baja. Our Pelagic Mexico snorkel tour was one I had been looking forward to getting on for a long time. It certainly lived up to my expectations. With such a mix of emotions. Anticipation, excitement, thrill and a bit overwhelming at times. Not to mention the need for patience. After meeting my group and being briefed by the amazing team at Latitude Encounters, we were ready for a day of swimming with sharks. Our first day heading out the harbour of Cabo was an experience in itself. The boat was being followed by curious large male sea lions, then arriving at the famed arch. After a quick photo shoot we were underway. Heading out on the Pacific side of the Baja peninsula. As the name would suggest we were heading off shore looking for pelagic sharks. Our main targets were mako and blue sharks. Within about three minutes into our passage, the crew had spotted our first of many humpback whales. The humpbacks come to this area every year for shelter and to bring up the calves. Such an awesome sight to watch something so big just glide past effortlessly, and so close to the boat. After spending some time with the whales we were back on our mission for sharks. After an exhilarating ride we were in the middle of the deep sea. The boat was positioned over a pinnacle starting at about 80 metres deep. Now we would begin the process of chumming. Chumming is a mixture of crushed dead fish in a big barrel of water. The team would then pour this bit by bit into the ocean, creating fishy oil slick on the
There is no place really like it. With the hustle and bustle of Cabo San Lucas, then around the corner complete wilderness of Baja. Our Pelagic Mexico snorkel tour was one I had been looking forward to getting on for a long time. It certainly lived up to my expectations. With such a mix of
For those of you who haven't done a bunch of snorkeling or spent a significant amount of time around the ocean, you may be wondering what exactly pelagic means. Well, pelagic generally refers to marine life that spend the majority of their time in the open blue ocean, as opposed to residing close to the shoreline or reefs. Species like manta rays, tuna, sword fish, most species of sharks, and whales would all be considered pelagics. Basically, these are the species that are responsible for most peoples interests in the ocean given the charismatic personalities and awe inspiring behavior of these animals. The only thing is though, many of these species are quite hard come by as they spend their their time roaming the open ocean. Regular encounters with creatures such as schools of mobula rays and dolphins are few and far between, even in most iconic snorkeling destinations, and can hardly be predicted, unless of course you happen to be on a pelagic specific snorkel safari in the pelagic paradise that is the Sea of Cortez. The way the pelagic safari works is, every morning we board a well equipped and comfortable speedboat from the beautiful marina in Cabo San Lucas Mexico and head out past the iconic arch of Cabo and into the illustrious Sea of Cortez in search of orca whales, fleets of mobula rays, various species of sharks, and whatever else happens to cross our bow. I'll say this straight away, this tour is not for everyone. If your ideal snorkeling holiday is spending hours floating over beautiful reefs, this is not that holiday. Komodo or Raja Ampat, places with a mix of marine life and endless reefs may be more your cup of tea. For those of you who dream of sitting on the edge
For those of you who haven’t done a bunch of snorkeling or spent a significant amount of time around the ocean, you may be wondering what exactly pelagic means. Well, pelagic generally refers to marine life that spend the majority of their time in the open blue ocean, as opposed to residing close to the