Dive Report - April 6th and 7th, 2015

Date:  April 6th & 7th, 2015

Dive Sites:  Pelican Rock, North Wall, and Chileno Bay

Depth Range:  20-40 feet

Visibility:  20-30 feet

Temperature:  72 degrees

Current:  Moderate to Strong

Waves:  Moderate

Wind:  Mild

Today Team Nautilus welcomed a family of divers into our family of divers.   The two children had completed their PADI open water class and pool in California and wanted to finish their certifications here in Cabo San Lucas.

We started the day with a pool check out and then moved to the open water.  CJ and Casey worked with the students and Dael took the parents on a guided tour.  Pelican Rock was vibrant with life, but the outgoing current was strong on the first dive.  We did our best to use the rock structures  to shield us from the current, and did the skills near the principal rock,  A surface float, down line, tag line and sand anchors provided a secure environment for the students.  During the tour for pleasure the new divers encountered a huge school of yellow snapper and goat fish, as well as free swimming white tip sharks.  The transition from confined water to open water can really be magical!

During the second day of certification dives three more family members joined the group.  We started the excursion by incorporating a whale watching tour into the transit to Chileno Bay.  Unfortunately today the whales were not too agreeable.  Their were a couple of sightings but they were on the horizon line.

Once on location in Chileno the group was split between certified divers and students.  The other family members snorkeled in the shallows of the protected bay.

After the first immersion, the group was escorted to shore where the other members of Team Nautilus had set up a beach picinic of Ceviche, tacos, and baguettes.  The group relaxed for a couple hours enjoying the beauty of Chileno Beach.  One of the students had a hard time equalizing on the first dive but a little Mexican salsa did the trick and was ready to go for round two! Congrats Todd on completing your PADI Open Water certification!

We wrapped up the day by motoring back to Cabo in search of whales...next time we will try to make reservations at the whale's corporate office...

Dive Report - April 4th, 2015

Date:  April 4th, 2015
Location: Cabo San Lucas

Dive Sites:  Robert's Rocks, Los Morros, Pelican Rock, and Land's End

Depth Range:  30-110 feet

Visibility:  20-50 feet

Temperature:  74 degrees

Current:  Mild

Waves:  Mild to Moderate

Wind:  Mild

Team Nautilus ran a variety of activities today.  The morning charter was for advanced divers.  There was a scuba review clinic in the dive shop, and the afternoon we toured some of our favorite bay dive sites.

Prior to the first dive, the bay was calm.  The boat traffic was at a minimum and the tranquil waters encouraged a pod of dolphins to gather in the bay and hunt the bait balls of sardines.  We counted at least 30 dolphins scattered over a sizable area.  Some of the animals demonstrated their acrobatic nature while others passively breached the surface to breath.

The advanced group in the morning decided to use Nitrox for their first immersion.  The 32% mix was ideal for the programmed depth.  We decided to check out Robert's Rocks.  This pinnacle starts in about 70 feet of water and touches the bottom at about 110.  The site can have lots of current but today the water was calm and flat.  We threw a down line to help our descent. On the way down the divers dodged numerous strands of the jellyfish more commonly known in the area as the "String Of Pearls".  While not deadly to humans, if you get stung by one, it can range from annoying to quite painful if you get wrapped up good. Made up of individual polyps that form chains or 'strings' ranging from a few inches to over 15 feet, these jelly fish have been seen on a variety of dive sites over the past few weeks. Thankfully enough, the cleaner fish in the area had decided to forgo cleaning the other larger fish usually waiting to get their parasites removed, and took directly to picking apart and eating some of the strands of pearls! If only we had more of them to help clear the areas!

On the bottom we found numerous soft coral formations.  In the rock crevices we saw lobsters, several species of moray eels, and one octopus.  In mid water we encountered a half dozen big groupers.  When the group began to ascend near the rock, they saw an explosion of sea life.  A massive school of grunts, pork fish, butterfly fish, and surgeon fish covered the rock.  Through the gaps in the school we spotted a sea turtle free swimming out into the blue.  At the top of the rock a school of about 20-30 amber jacks (2.5-3 feet long) investigated the group of divers.  After a 5 minute safety stop we said goodbye to fishy friends and returned to the surface.

The second dive was at Los Morros.  It is only about 10 minutes from the first dive site but the conditions changed dramatically.  The swell increased and we felt surge down to 50 feet.  Visibility dropped to only 20 feet and the sea life was seeking shelter from the surge.  Since the sea life was limited, the group stopped the dive short and decided to practice their Surface Marker Buoy deployment.  They were scheduled to dive in the Soccoro Islands in a couple days, and felt that a little practice could go a long way.  We hope they had an incredible experience on the Belle Amie. Next time take us in your dive bag...and please send us your photos!

In the afternoon once the Scuba Review was completed CJ took out the certified diver tour to the bay visiting Pelican Rock and Land's End. As it was later in the afternoon, the visibility had noticeably dropped to maybe 20-25 feet, but that didn't mean the divers weren't able to see anything. Free swimming white tip reef sharks, sea horses, octopus and sea lions and a very casual eagle ray were waiting to make the dives memorable as always! They witnessed the same kinds of cleaner fish picking and nibbling the strings of pearls that were turning the local bay sites into an organic obstacle course!

Until next time! Eat, Sleep, DIVE!

Dive Report - April 5th, 2015

Date:  April 5th, 2015
Location: Cabo San Lucas

Dive Sites:  Neptune's Finger and Land's End

Depth Range:  30-120 feet

Visibility:  20-40 feet

Temperature:  72 degrees

Current:  Mild

Waves:  Moderate

Wind:  Mild

Today the morning tour visited Neptune's Finger.  The divers wanted to make a deep dive following the top of the canyon wall.  The immersion started near the principal structure and the descended to their operating depth of 110 feet.  Through the descent we found numerous tropical fish escorting us to the maximum depth. On the canyon plateaus we found several guitar fish and stone fish tucked into the crevices and over hangs.  At 110 feet the divers still had a great view of the canyon below.  As you fly over the canyon walls, it is natural to wonder what could come from the depths of the seemingly bottomless void.  During the ascent, the group paused at one of the cleaning stations in 60 feet of water. This cleaning station is a small rock formation sitting off on it's own surrounded only by sand. Being the only structure in the area in mid-water, it is a good stopping point for larger fish to stop and get groomed by butterfly and barber fish picking parasites off, as well as a good spot to see a variety of moray eels.  On the outskirts of the rock amber jacks and bonitos cruised around hunting the fish that strayed from the station.

During past trips to Cabo San Lucas, the divers had enjoyed Land's End before.  However, they had yet to see it after the 2014 hurricane last fall.  The divers descended at Land's End in front of the cave like crevice that used to only be about 10 feet across.  The crevice is now in 50 feet of water and extends almost to the surface.  On the way into the cave we encountered a group of divers coming out.  They had found a large diamond sting ray in the cave and followed it out.  After exploring the recently excavated cave, we made our way through the narrow sea lion channel.  It is about 5 feet across and in the past it was only about 5-10 feet deep. After Hurricane Odile though, it's now almost 30 feet and a good spot to try and see some sea lions playing. After passing through the channel we explored the shipwreck and Land's End Pinnacle.  We encountered large schools of tropical fish, several octopi, more than 10 moray eels.

Dive Report - April 3rd, 2015

Date:  April 3rd, 2015
Location: Cabo Pulmo

Dive Site:  El Vencidor

Depth Range:  30-50 feet

Visibility:  15-20 feet

Temperature:  74 degrees

Current:  Moderate

Waves:  Mild

Wind:  Moderate

Julio took a group of local divers and snorkelers to Cabo Pulmo today.  They made their dives at the El Vencedor Shipwreck .  The group found large schools of pork fish and several amber jacks.  The highlight of the trip was the bull sharks.  These awesome animals are incredible to see face to face. Visibility at the shipwreck was only about 15 feet.   Today the encounters were up close and personal!!

Dive Report- April 1st, 2015

Date:  April 1st, 2015
Location: Cabo San Lucas

Dive Site:  Pelican Rock and Land's End

Depth Range:  30-70 feet

Visibility:  25-30 feet

Temperature:  72 degrees

Current:  Moderate

Waves:  Mild

Wind:  Mild

Today Team Nautilus took out a private charter to our local dive sites.  A foreign dignitary brought their family to Cabo for vacation over the Semana Santa Holiday.  The Nautilus Team was honored to arrange their diving activities.  Julio captained the boat while Dael was responsible for their guided tour.

The action at Pelican Rock and Land's End was remarkable.  The divers witnessed free swimming white tip sharks, free swimming guitar fish, sea horses, large groupers, and several nudibranchs.

Dive Report - April 2nd, 2015

Date:  April 2nd, 2015
Location: Cabo San Lucas

Dive Site:  Chileno, Blow Hole, Pelican Rock, and North Wall

Depth Range:  30-70 feet

Visibility:  30-50 feet

Temperature:  74 degrees

Current:  Moderate

Waves:  Mild

Wind:  Mild

Team Nautilus provided a number of services in Cabo today.  The morning tours included a private yacht charter on the corridor sites, certified diver tours to the bay, and afternoon Discover Scuba Divers.

The conditions in the morning were stellar.  The water was warm, blue, and clear.  In the corridor Dael was able to find a large mixed school of pork fish and goat fish.  As the divers approached the school it changed shape but the ball was larger than 30 feet in diameter.  Although these fish are quite common to Cabo, the size of the ball was extra cool!

The divers in the bay saw resting white tip sharks, sea horses, and large schools of yellow snapper and trumpet fish.  Just one more beautiful day at the world famous Pelican Rock.

In the afternoon the sun began to set behind the mountains near Pelican Rock.  As the shadow was cast over the dive site, the white tip sharks became more active.  Our DSDs were able to see the white tips free swimming in only 30 feet of water.  The group had a great time and we look forward to them completing their PADI open water course in the future!

Dive Report - March 31st, 2015

Date:  March 31st, 2015
Location: Cabo San Lucas

Dive Site:  Robert's Rocks

Depth Range:  110 feet

Visibility:  25-35 feet

Temperature:  72 degrees

Current:  Moderate

Waves:  Moderate

Wind:  Strong

Today the Nautilus team was conducting an ANDI Extended Range Course.  The site was off shore in about a 110 feet of water.  The scheduled run time was 90 minutes.  The team planned the dive for three cylinders of bottom mix and one for the decompression stops.  Normally this dive site yields limited bottom times, but by using Tec diving procedures we were able to explore a much larger area. The conditions were pretty good accept for the top 20 feet.  During the last deco stops the visibility dropped to about 15 feet.  The shallow water was inundated with a variety of jellyfish  (no stings today).

The group had hoped to spot some whales during the deco hang since we saw a baby humpback breaching a few hundred yards away just minutes before entering the water, but unfortunately the only whales encountered were seen from the surface.  Our gentle giants should still be in the area for a few more weeks. Next time we won't stop for tacos on the way out!

During the dive we found spotted sting rays, diamond sting rays, bulls eye electric rays, jeweled moray eels, a large green sea turtle and a school of 40+ sierra mackerel!