Los Cabos diving and exploring info

[tmaschler]

Greetings, all!

I am a new member and will be heading to Los Cabos with a friend on May 10-20 (After I graduate from law school--yes, I really should be studying for exams rather than posting this...)

Thanks to DiverJan, Docvikingo and Sapphire for their helpful posts. I'd still like additional advice on several things:

Can you recommend reputable diveshops to dive with and get equipment serviced? There may not be the same problem with "cattleboats" as in Cozumel, but I'd like to find an operator who takes smallish groups but is still experienced, has a well-set-up boat and has similar-to-American safety standards (I remember heading back after dark from snorkeling in Isla Mujeres only to discover there were no running lights on the boat, and no life preservers either!)

Will I be warm enough with just a diveskin, or do I need a wetsuit?

Do you have any divesite recommendations? So far I have only dived in very calm conditions (Caribbean), so I should probably at least start out at sites without too much current or surf. Also, I have to admit, the idea of drift diving makes me a little nervous--what happens if they take off without you?!?

Are there any nice places not too far away from Los Cabos to do daytrips or overnight trips? We'd like to do a little cultural exploring in addition to the underwater adventures. Any advice on nice villages, simple, pleasant places to stay (phones, TV's, in-room bath etc. not required)would be great. Have no problem going somewhere where most people don't speak English.

Thank you!!!

Toni

 

[Pamdiv]

I've had success with a small dive shop that operates out of the Hilton (can't remember the name), but that's up towards San Jose del Cabo. You've gotta go to Gordo Banks. We caught sight of a whale shark, mantas and a hammerhead all in one day! I hear there's some good sites near Land's end.

 

[jahhaas]

I dove one day in Cabo in February of this year with Amigos Del Mar. I used them because of the number of positive comments on this board. The people were great and the boats were fine. I took my own gear and was happy I did. The regulators they rented looked a little worn. That isn't to say that they weren't well maintained, they just looked like they had been on quite a few dives. The two sites I dove had some pronounced surge and I went through my air faster than I would have liked. As for a dive skin, in February the locals were diving in 3mm jumpsuits with 3mm shorties over the top. They also were wearing hoods. While the water will be somewhat warmer when you are there, I would suggest that you wear more than a skin. I dove with a 7mm farmer john with a hood and gloves. That was way more than I needed. As for day trips etc, as far as I know there isn't much in terms of ruins etc. A couple of years ago my family hired a van and we took a day trip to Todos Santos. You can stand in the street in front of the Hotel California and sing Eagles songs.
Good luck on your law school exams. I've been there (though it was a long time ago). Just wait for the bar exam. Joe

 

[amm91]

I too will be going to Los Cabos, but from June 9 to June 25. After reading a lot of the previous threads, I was thinking of contacting Diversions & Amigos del Mar.

My major question left has to do with the conditions at Cabo Pulmo & Gordo Banks and whether I should dive these sites. Some books and posts rate these as 'intermediate,' others as 'must be experienced'.

I'm 32, go on diving vacations twice a year (for 3 years), but have less than 60 dives. Have AOW and nitrox cert. I dove the East End of Grand Cayman in really rough surface weather, but found the current/surge at 90 feet to be fun. On the other hand, in Turks & Caicos at French Caye, I was scared sh*tless when the current picked up out of nowhere and I had to hang onto the anchor. All the divers had a hard time with that dive, but it certainly taught me that diving can be dangerous in many ways.

So, my concern is that I don't want to repeat my French Caye experience, especially as a new mother of a 10 month
old. This is coupled to my concern about whether dive shops will "play down" the difficulty of the conditions on a given day, since June is somewhat off season for business.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

Nervous in NY ilot:
amm91

 

[Pamdiv]

I too will be going to Los Cabos, but from June 9 to June 25. After reading a lot of the previous threads, I was thinking of contacting Diversions & Amigos del Mar.

My major question left has to do with the conditions at Cabo Pulmo & Gordo Banks and whether I should dive these sites. Some books and posts rate these as 'intermediate,' others as 'must be experienced'.

I'm 32, go on diving vacations twice a year (for 3 years), but have less than 60 dives. Have AOW and nitrox cert. I dove the East End of Grand Cayman in really rough surface weather, but found the current/surge at 90 feet to be fun. On the other hand, in Turks & Caicos at French Caye, I was scared sh*tless when the current picked up out of nowhere and I had to hang onto the anchor. All the divers had a hard time with that dive, but it certainly taught me that diving can be dangerous in many ways.

So, my concern is that I don't want to repeat my French Caye experience, especially as a new mother of a 10 month
old. This is coupled to my concern about whether dive shops will "play down" the difficulty of the conditions on a given day, since June is somewhat off season for business.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

Nervous in NY ilot:
amm91

Gordo Banks is a deep dive. We bottomed at 130'. The current is unpredictable at best. Some times its a 30' sometimes 90' or anywhere in between. We dove it last in April and there was no discernable current. Our DM had us descend on the anchor rope until we came to a depth that had little current. This was a drift dive. It was well worth the trip. That whale shark passing overhead was awesome!!!!! Have fun!

 

[Squashie]

Last dive in Cabo was approximately 8 yrs ago (sorry I'm at work and the log book is at home) but Amigos del Mar seemed a very competent and resourceful dive operation. My regulator (Zeagle) malfunctioned during the trip and they were able to have it repaired in time for the next day's diving at a very reasonable rate.

The visibility in Cabo is nothing like the Carribean, only about 30' to 50' during the time I was there and the water temp was somewhat chilly...3 mil farmer john and a 2.5 shorty was required to keep me comfortable...but, we were diving in the late summer/early Fall as the Marlin Tourny was still a few weeks away.

Gordo Banks was a good site as I remember it...saw a couple of medium sized Manta's and a few really nice lobsters. Also got to swim with the sea lion's out by the "Land's End" point on another dive, that was really great! One minor problem, the surge was really bad in the harbor area and trying to stay off of the rocks was nearly impossible, but I was told this was an unusually bad day by others who were more familiar with the local diving. One day we took a day trip literally to the other side of the peninsula just North of Cabo San Jose and did two dives on a small reef formation in the Gulf of CA. Very shallow dive, less than 35' at all times, but what marine life...many very large Manta's 12' to 16', some of the prettiest sea horses I've ever seen (don't know the species but they were purple in color), a couple of small hammerheads and many different types of colorful reef fish (again, the log book is at home). Visibility here was slightly better than Cabo San Lucas but still much less than 100'.

Have a great time, and be sure to check out Sammy Hagar's Cabo Wabo Cantina...you never know who will just show up there and play...we saw Alice Cooper while we were there.

Walter