The Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortez, is one of the most bewitching holiday destinations. It extends about 700 miles with a water stretch that divides the Mexican mainland from the Baja California Peninsula. This sea is home to a number of islands and rock formations, which makes it a perfect tourist spot all around the year. It also houses countless live board diving sites, which lets the tourists explore the underwater.
Sea lions, humpback sharks, sperm whales, dolphins, Mobula rays, pilot whales, porpoises, whale sharks, one can make friends with all these water animals being in this water land, but yes from a safe distance. One can encounter an ample number of marine mates that you may have never seen before while diving in the Sea of Cortez.
So here in this article, we are going to discuss all about this mesmerizing place to give you a quick and brief insight into the sea of Cortez. Here we are going to tell you about how you can reach this place and the bountiful options that one has to explore the length and breadth of this Adam’s ale.
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Things to do in Sea of Cortez
Apart from sea diving, there are a few more exciting activities that you can try out in this exotic location. So here are a few more fun-filled activities that you can enjoy in Cortez.
Fishing Excursion in the sea of Cortez
The Sea of Cortez is a paradise place for fishes as well as fishers. So, all you need to have is a permit and your fishing accessories, and you are good to go! You can have a gala time casting your fish lines into the most exotic place where you can get to witness a huge fish habitat. One can get to see several colorful and varied species such as sea bass, sailfish, dolphin fish, snapper, yellowtail, marlin, and a lot many other fishes. For obtaining the permit for fishing, you can apply online via the State of California, Baja, by logging in to the fish permit website.
Paddling out for a Kayaking tour
If you want to go out for some easy workout session and enjoy the seas at the same time, you can paddle along the coastlines of the Sea of Cortez. Yes, we are talking about a Kayaking tour. You can enjoy the breezy air gushing over your excitement-filled faces, the sunlight kissing your face, and the blues all around giving you your own territory to paddle on. So, you can consider going out for a Kayaking tour for a quick workout while enjoying the mesmerizing sea at the same time.
It is a calm and serene place for the sea of Cortez diving, so you do not have to be afraid of high currents and can enjoy a peaceful time paddling along the coastlines. Also, one can enjoy the pristine beach view, tropical islands, rolling foothills, and a lot more.
Charter Yachts
If Kayaking is not your style and you are high on your budget and can afford a charter, then there is something more thrilling waiting for you in Cortez to unbox. Getting on a charter yacht can be your best bet to place on to enjoy your holidays at its best being in this place of exotic beauty. If you wish to have a more luxurious expedition, you can also take a cruise and relish every moment of your sea tour.
One can sit back and relax and enjoy their luxury yacht charter doing all their favorite things on board. For all the honeymoon couples, this is one of the best ways to enjoy your special moments and to bestow love on your partners. Being on board, you can also enjoy a few major marine activities apart from having some chill time on the yacht. You can taste the thunder amidst the seas by getting yourselves involved in other marine activities such as paddle parading, snorkeling, sea sailing, and a lot more.
Beachy beach drive
The coastline of the Sea of Cortez extends up to 2500 miles or 4000 kilometers to be precise, and thus you can very well understand how this sea gives space to a few far-flung beaches along its shorelines. To name a few, you can consider paying a visit to La Paz beaches, namely Playa Coromuel, Rosarito area beaches, Pichilingue Beach, Mulege area beaches, Caimancito Beach, San Felipe area beaches and a lot more. You can also consider unboxing the secrets of some virgin beaches with rugged rock formations and white sands and spend a day out there under the sun and cool breeze swaying all around. There are more than hundreds of beaches that you can explore near the Sea of Cortez.
Water adventure
When it comes to enjoying a sea trip, scuba diving in the sea of Cortez is one of the most breathtaking water activities that no adventure freak can resist. And if the name of the sea is Sea of Cortez, then you have surely landed down in a place where you can be lucky enough to experience all the thrills of these awesome water sports.
Not only scuba diving, but you can also opt for snorkeling in the sea of Cortez. You can get to find many operators who can assist you in letting you have a snorkel drive with sea lions. Apart from Cortez, you can also opt for snorkeling dives in Cabo San Lucas coast at Santa Maria.
This place brings you ample opportunities to beat the thunder. Also, it is a home to a wide variety of flora and fauna that will let you have a candid experience of witnessing them amongst the blues in the crystal-clear waters of the sea. It has some of the most colorful and varied fish species and over 5000 invertebrate species that will let you have a tour amongst the marine animals being an aquatic human at the same time. Turtles, whales, fishes, sea lions, dolphins – you can get to see them all while enjoying a dive in the deep seas.
Sea of Cortez Diving Sites
It’s not just a single place where you can enjoy your vacation; you can become a true nomad and wander to the different sites of Sea of Cortez diving to enjoy it at its best. So here are a few diving sites of Cortez that one can experience while being at this place:
La Vela Angela Island
This island is located towards the Northern Sea of Cortez, and you can have a chilling time out there enjoying water sports and marine life. Ranging from sea lions to Mobula rays and Colourful Nudibranchs, you can get to see all kinds of varied marine animals of different sizes and shapes.
El Lavadero, Las Animas
This place is known to be a spiritual Sea of Cortez diving site where you can find a multitude of fishes swimming in the hearts of the blues. May it be hammerhead sharks or tuna fishes and a lot many other fish breeds, you can get to see them all swimming their ways in the pinnacle of these beaches.
El Arroyo, Punta Matir
El Arroyo gives you a place to dive down in an area of about 40m and is also home to an excellent array of marine animals that can make your day. Diving deep down and witnessing the marine animals swimming their way being amongst them as just another water inhabitant can spark up your life and make your holidays worth your investment. Visiting this place in August and September can get you to spot juvenile sea lions getting you some awesome memories during your trip.
How to get there?
Fantasizing about the Sea of Cortez diving and getting a chance to do umpteen of things at this place may have surely made you add this place to your wish list. So, if you are someone planning to visit this captivating place sometime soon, then here is how you can land down at Sea of Cortez
La Paz
This place has an International Airport named as Marquez De Leon International Airport. You can book tickets from the city of Mexico, Los Angeles, or Guadalajara straight to La Paz and land down to enjoy your luxurious recreational time. Further, you can make a move to one of the best and most beautiful resorts of the place to enjoy your trip.
Cabo Pulmo
If you wish to holiday in the vicinity of Cabo Pulmo, then you can book your tickets up to Los Cabos, which is another international airport. Once you touch down at this place, you can move forward to one of the best diving locations in the world – Cabo Pulmo. It is hardly a one-hour drive from this airport. If you are planning to spend your vacation at Cabo San Lucas, you can also consider booking tickets to Los Cabos as this is the nearest airport.
Loreto: If you wish to visit Sea of Cortez, then you can also consider making reservations up to Loreto city. It is also an international airport, but the number of flights is fewer over here. But still, you can descend down here and take a car rental to drive to your destination.
Best time to pay a visit to the sea of Cortez for a dive
Sea of Cortez witnesses’ tourists all over the year & people from all walks of life finds this place quite interesting and exciting to have some respite and enjoy the best scuba diving in Mexico. But apart from being an all-time open spot for tourists, the prime holiday season is given below
December to March
This period witnessed a lot of humpback grey colored whales, which will add more color to your trip to the Sea of Cortez despite the offbeat color tone it exhibits. Also, you can get to see Mobula rays during this period. The temperature during this period usually fluctuates between 65°-86°F. The waters are cold during this time, and you may also encounter poor visibility conditions in comparison to the summers. During summers, this place can be a top spot for heat and sun, but it becomes pleasant because of the refreshing sea waves and breeze that you get to experience at this place. This place becomes quite windy during the winters that may make you feel tempted to get down at this place.
July to December
Another best time that you can visit the place is between July and December, wherein you can experience clear waters and higher levels of visibility. October and November stand as the best time to rest in the lap of La Paz area of the Sea of Cortez as this is the time when you can see whales and sharks popping up in the sea’s warm waters. Also, you need to take note that if you are planning to hit La Paz for a dive with sea lions and other marine animals, this place remains closed between 1 June to 31 august to allow the mating of sea animals. So do not plan your holidays this time if you are a diehard fan of diving.
How to get down for a dive?
This place is an all-time tourist spot; thus, you will not face any difficulty paving your way to enjoying the deepest scuba dive ever at this place. There are numerous diving resorts where you can calm down your nerves for a while and get ready to face the sea thunder as never before. These resorts also have live board options, and you can easily find a tour guide at this place who can help you explore the sea and take you to all the places that are not worth missing while being on this island.
Conclusion
So, by now, you might have got a quick sneak peek to what this place has to offer you. Ranging from a face to face encounter with marine life to beach views and water sport activities, there is a lot to delve into. So, what are you waiting for? Get going and book your tickets to the nearest airport to come ashore the Sea of Cortez.
