EAST CAPE DIVING AREAS ARE QUIET THIS WEEK

Nov. 18, 2005, Mark Rayor, Vista Sea Sport, Cabo Pulmo, East Cape Diving, Baja California Sur, Mexico:

All is quiet in the East Cape diving areas. The north wind has been blowing all week and we have not been able to get a diving tour off this week. Looking at the long term forecast, East Cape diving weather should be beautiful for Thanksgiving. I can't wait to get back in the water to experience the season changing. It is like watching the leaves on the trees turn when autumn arrives.

When diving conditions at East Cape change, as is taking place right now, a lot of exciting things happen on the Cabo Pulmo coral reefs. The diving water temperature is dropping from the balmy 90 degrees we experienced until September, and it is currently in the high 70's. Normally by year end it is down the low 70's.

With this change comes a migration of different sea life. The edges of the Cabo Pulmo reefs will be littered with electric rays and guitar rays. Cow nose and mobula rays will also appear cruising the edges of the reef. Colorful nudibranchs and Spanish dancers seem to come out of nowhere with the cooler water. Huge pelagic fish also move to shallower locations.

The Spanish dancers are hard to spot at first. I'm certain we have swum with thousands of them that blended so well with the foliage on the rocks they were not detected. They are a macro photographers delight. It is a fun discovery when the first one is sighted. Then there is another and another. Look and there are loads of them. How long have they been here? Why didn't we see them before? Beats me! One day soon they will be here.

I don't look forward to pulling on my wet suit after not using it in the comfort of warm water but the rewards of sighting sea life we don't see in the summer will make it worth it.

This will be our twelfth year in Baja diving and every year we discover more of the subtle changes that always take place.