Location: The Boiler, The Canyon dive sites, San Benedicto Island, Socorro, Cabo San Lucas
Boarding day dawned warm and sunny, with light winds and a calm ocean which would follow us as we left the shelter of the marina in Cabo San Lucas, at the southern most point in Baja California, Mexico, in search of the Giant Manta Ray! The 220 nautical mile voyage from Cabo to San Benedicto Island (one of the Socorro Islands) was as smooth as if we were cruising a lake, and we were treated to a large school of dolphins playing in our bow wake and leaping high out of the air alongside the Nautilus Explorer. A breathtaking sunset to end our first night at sea had every ones hopes high for the diving to come in the morning.
Our first dive of the day was staged at the southern end of San Benedicto Island, at a dive site called the Canyon. The canyon is our most reliable site for encountering schooling hammerheads, and this morning would not be an exception. A school of up to 50 hammerhead sharks greeted the divers on their checkout dive, cruising up from the depths to visit one of the cleaning stations along the volcanic ridge extending underwater from the island.
After our checkout dive amongst the hammerheads we headed to the North-West corner of San Benedicto, to a famous dive site called the Boiler. This site is fully exposed to the open Pacific Ocean, so it’s not everyday we get to enjoy it. A pinnacle rising from 140′ up to 10′, this rock is a great place to experience the intimate giant manta ray encounters that Socorro is famous for. The weather was textbook today, with little to no swell and a very gentle breeze. The Manta Rays would cooperate as well as the weather, with as many as 4 individual Giant Mantas being sighted at once, and showing our guests the hospitality that we’ve come to expect from the gentle giants. Big smiles from all our guests and crew in the water today. A great start to this 10 day exploration of the Socorro Islands, and more Manta Rays and Sharks to come I’m sure!
Talk again soon,
Captain Gordon
Weather: mostly sunny, 80F, light winds, calm seas
Water: Viz 40-60ft, water temp 77F, light to moderate current
As smooth as cruising a lake…
