I lived in Loreto for four and a half years ... having just moved away three months ago. I'm surprised to read your review of Blue Nation, since I've done hundreds of dives with them and never had a bad experience. But no dive company is 100%, and it's possible they had a bad day. As you say, Dolphin Dive is also a really good outfit to work with. Besides those two, there are a few companies that offer various tourist services, among them scuba diving ... they're hit or miss in terms of quality of experience, but some are worth using if the other two dive ops are already booked.
If I had to pick a "favorite" month to dive it would be October. The water is still warm and clear, the air temps are not so hot, and the seasonal folks haven't begun arriving just yet ... they usually come in November and December. The water gets really cold in winter ... down to the low 60's by February, and beginning to warm up in April or May. Most of that's due to seasonal currents causing upwellings ... which often makes for poor visibility ... but it also brings with it the reason for the whales in the winter months. Blue whales are the largest animals that ever existed on earth .... and you can see them every winter right there in Loreto's "front yard". Spring brings with it heavy, heavy schools of sardines, and all the larger predators that feed on them. In March 2021 I had the experience of watching a bubble-hunting humpback whale breaching with its mouth wide open ... it was so close to town people were standing on the malecon watching the show. June brings the migrations of mobula rays ... those ones that leap into the air flapping their wings and doing backflips. It's quite the show. Dolphins are abundant most of the seasons ... both the bottlenose and their more numerous smaller cousins, the common dolphins. Later in the year, orcas tend to come in ... we watched them hunting dolphins once. It was a brutal display of nature, but quite the experience to watch ... fortunately they waited till we were out of the water (yes, we were scuba diving) before the real action started ... but they were all around us when we surfaced from the dive.
Guess what I'm trying to say is that every season has its highlights out in the park. But unless you're into cold water and relatively low vis, Loreto's probably not the best choice for a winter vacation. Go in late spring or early fall for the best vacation diving.
Besides the diving, there's paddleboarding, kayaking, and fishing for water activities. Hiking ... yeah, for vacationers I'd suggest hiring a guide, as the mountains are steep, rugged, and for the most part private property ... Tabor Canyon is one of the rare hikes on public land in the area. Locals and expats tend to know where and how to go, but for tourists I'd say a guide is best option. For those interested in something a bit unique, inquire about Mesquite Canyon ... and be prepared to do portions of the hike wading through pools of water in a canyon that's, at times, just a few meters wide. It's a signature hike in that area.
Spend a day at San Javier ... a ranching town about 25 miles into the mountains. Take a mule ride in those mountains ... several of the tourist services companies offer them. Hire a sailboat out of Puerto Escondido ... about 15 miles south of town ... and go visit the park's islands ... they're spectacular.
It's a beautiful place ... I left it for my own reasons, but much of my heart remains in that particular little slice of paradise ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
