Magdalena Bay
Mexico Sardine Run & Striped Marlin
“Up to 50 striped marlin were taking turns one by one, slicing in at high speed and attacking clueless sardine, while the rest of the marlin lurked under the big bait ball pressing the tiny fish against the surface. Dozens of California sea lions were hunting as I’ve never seen before. The whole scenario showed me the top predators role in an ecosystem and how they share their feeding strategy with other marine species creating very established hierarchy between them. It amazes me most when this happens underwater. I think we still have a lot to learn from every single animal found on that aqua medium. If somebody asked me which is the trip I wait every year to happen, I would say 100% the Mexican sardine run with striped marlins!”
— David S
Striped Marlin of Magdalena Bay
During October and November, a magical event happens in the nutrient rich swirling blue waters off Magdalena Bay where striped marlin gather to hunt on the second largest sardine run in the world. This thrilling underwater action is spectacular. There is an excellent chance of also seeing california sea lions, dolphin, wahoo, pelicans, different species of gulls, boobie birds, frigate birds, shearwaters and even the awe inspiring albatross.
While it’s best to snorkel or free dive around the bait balls there will be 3 to 4 dives on your week long trip with massive schools of fish, turtles and the wreck of a WW1 submarine and the passenger steam ship SS Independence. But wait, there is more! Humpback whales are on the move at this time of year and if we are really lucky, we might even see orcas or blue whales!
Your Magdalena Bay Adventure looks like this*
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Day 1
Drop by our SeeCreatures Dive Centre in the inner harbour of Cabo San Lucas to get fitted for any rental gear you might need and to take advantage of a complimentary Backscatter underwater photography workshop or a complimentary warmup dive or both! Meeting at the Dive Centre by 4:30 latest to board your liveaboard dive ship for a sunset cruise and overnight run up to Magdalena Bay.
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Day 2
Let’s go diving at the south end of Isla Santa Margarita. You will be amazed at the abundance and variety of life. Both dive sites are home to California sea lion colonies.
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Day 3
We are going to be diving shipwrecks today weather permitting. A WW1 submarine that is remarkably intact with loads of life or the wreck of the SS steamship Independence of the Vanderbuilt Line that sank with the loss of 150 lives.
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Day 4 to 6
Bait balls. striped marlin. incredible predatory behaviour. adrenaline rushes!! The sardine run off Magdalena Bay is massive with untold millions of fish. Our plan is to divide into groups of 6 or 7 divers per skiff and head out in individual groups when we spot a good bait ball. Unlike the smaller bait balls we see down at Socorro Island, these bait balls are so large that they can survive hours of predatory attacks giving us ample opportunity to snorkel, free-dive and experience this incredible behaviour. We will be out on the water all day, each day, before heading into shelter for cocktail hour and a calm anchorage every evening..
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Day 7
Spare day! While the swell is generally quite low during this time of year, we have allowed for an extra FLEX day in case of weather. We can always duck inside the Bay and explore the mangrove swamps and get some extra diving in. Weather permitting, we are aching to further explore Thetis Bank to find an offshore pinnacle rumoured to be as shallow as 40 feet. You can be sure that our captain and crew are going to do their very best to maximize your experience all week long subject to any weather constraints
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Day 8
Return to Cabo San Lucas for breakfast and disembarking by 8:30 a.m. Don’t forget that this is also peak season for diving the Sea of Cortez where we have back-to-back liveaboard trips available as well as Cabo Pulmo and day trips to Gordo Banks and also the whale sharks of Mogote! Let’s keep diving!!
*Our captains and crew will do their very best to give you the most spectacularly dive experience.
Given weather and animal sighting itinerary may vary.
Magdalena Bay Gallery
Blogs
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Sea of Cortez Photography Immersion by The Malibu Artist
The Sea of Cortez Photography Immersion is about nature and learning how to photograph it, whether it’s from shore, on the boat, or in the air. We’ll have an opportunity to do each. It’s a fully immersive learning experience in the heart of the Sea of Cortez aboard a state-of-the-art liveaboard. Here’s our photography itinerary. […]
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Zebra Goby and Blue Banded Goby
Gobies are small fishes, no more than 2 inches. In fact, some of the world’s smallest vertebrates are members of this family of fish. In general, gobies have bright colors with markings that help them to be identified. They live on the bottom of the reef feeding from smaller invertebrates such as shrimps, worms, and mollusks. However few species act as cleaners, eating parasites from the bodies, mouths, and gills of larger fishes.
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Fun and Action-Packed Five Days
What a fantastic trip in the sea of Cortez! We had a fun and action-packed five days, hopping from one island to a more beautiful one and encountering a significant amount of wildlife! Just imagine: first day swimming with a pod of 30 dolphins, then a family of 9 orcas! Then a great dive at […]
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The Sea of Cortez is Amazing!
Crew were enthusiastic, attentive and extremely helpful throughout the trip! In particular I appreciated Juan David and Ronald who went out of their way to encourage me as I did different dives I hadn’t done before : going into shipwreck, night dives (X2!!).
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What a Fantastic Trip in the Sea of Cortez!
We had a fun and action-packed 5 days, hopping from one island to a more beautiful one and encountering a great amount of wildlife! Just imagine> first day swimming with a pod of 30 dolphins, then a family of 9 orcas! +a great dive at la Reina with 50+feet visibility that was like an aquarium. 2nd day diving with the sea lions of las Animas, incredibly friendly, and exploring the reef finding octopus, eels, lobsters, and even a Sea horse! 3rd day was a great kayak time through the mangrove of San Jose Island, before going diving with more sea lions. one was so friendly he literally hugged one of the divers for 2 minutes! Then night dive with loads of octopus, sea hares, nudibranchs, and night snorkel for the non-divers. And another snorkeling with a pod of more than 400 bottlenose dolphins! Then today’s last dive day, on a shipwreck called fang ming, full of turtles and fish before a cold beer on the pristine white sand in front of the turquoise water of Corralito beach in Espiritu Santo island. There are activities for everyone, divers and non-divers, and memories that will last forever!
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It Is Always Great to See Mantas Returning
On our first day of activities on this trip, we got to see and swim with a pod of common dolphins, sea lions, more than 12 different sea turtles, sting rays, school of different species of fish but the most amazing thing today was to see an oceanic manta.