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 sure is an absolute bucket list adventure, to be able to swim with the world's largest shark. Considered the holy grail by many. Even though the world's largest shark sounds a bit scary, they are in actual fact harmless. Gentle giants is a name affectionately given to them and suits them well. They are ocean nomads crossing great distances all over the world. Fortunately for us we know a few areas where they like to congregate. Here in Indonesia we have Cenderawasih Bay and Triton Bay in West Papua. I recently just explored Gorantalo in the north of Sulawesi. While in Mexico you have the famed La Paz area in Baja. These are places we visit on our Snorkel Venture tours, and while nothing is guaranteed this is our best chance to snorkel with whale sharks. Though they can turn up anywhere on any one of our trips. Just got to be lucky. So let's jump into some quick facts about the whale shark. As mentioned before it is the largest fish (Shark) in the ocean, With the largest specimen measuring at 20 meters. Most weigh between 15 and 20 tons when mature. If you think of a big bus, that’s about the size of a whale shark. Whale sharks can live up to about 60 years with some reports believing they can reach 100 or even 150 years old. Whale sharks give birth to live young that develop from eggs inside the mother. They can give birth to up to 300 pups, measuring between 35 and 70 cm in length. Whale sharks have a vast area they populate. With the majority living in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, with a small percent living in the Atlantic. Whale sharks have been spotted as far north as New York. Whale
For sure is an absolute bucket list adventure, to be able to swim with the world’s largest shark. Considered the holy grail by many. Even though the world’s largest shark sounds a bit scary, they are in actual fact harmless. Gentle giants is a name affectionately given to them and suits them well. They are
