Hi SD fans, and welcome back to the channel. While we are all longing to jump on an airplane
and jet off to some tropical warm-water destinations, the world of global travel is still in a state
of turmoil, so today I am going to be giving you a whistlestop tour of two very-different
dive hotspots – the Socorro Islands and Guadalupe Island - showcasing some of the
fantastic marine life that characterize these two high-energy holiday destinations.
If you haven’t been here before – and why not? - my name is Mark, I am the editor-in-chief
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more content for you to enjoy. Now, let’s dive into the video!
The Socorro Islands The Socorro Islands, which comprise the four
volcanic islands of Socorro, San Benedicto, Roca Partida and Clarion, are known as Mexico’s
‘Little Galapagos’ due to their remote location and plethora of pelagic animals that
you can encounter, although it is often compared with the likes of Cocos Island and Malpelo
as well. Out of all of them, it is by far the easiest to get to from the USA, with the
majority of liveaboards departing from San Jose del Cabo, which has its own airport.
It can take 24 hours to travel to this magnificent area, so make sure you take some good books,
catch some ZZZs so you are ready for the diving to come, and catch up with your fellow adventurers
on board. Plus, there will be plenty of movies to while away the hours in the main salon,
or in the comfort of your own stateroom. Diving at the Socorro Islands is recommended
for experienced divers, due to the often choppy seas, strong currents and abyssal walls. You
need to be confident in your buoyancy and happy dealing with surge, swell and currents.
Safety is paramount, especially when you are diving way offshore as at the Socorro Islands.
All divers are required to carry a whistle and an inflatable safety sausage or DSMB at
all times, and in many cases are also provided with individual GPS/radio beacons.
Top dive sites include Roca Partida, which is a small, guano-covered rocky islet poking
out of the Pacific Ocean – it measures just 300 feet in length, and its twin peaks (it
is also known as Split Rock) are 82ft and 112ft high – and is so compact that divers
can circumnavigate the entire site a couple of times on one dive. However, what it lacks
in size it makes up for in content – the vertical walls attract hordes of pelagics,
from various shark species (silky, gray, hammerhead, whale) to dolphins, manta rays and even humpback
whales. Another must-dive is The Boiler, one of the
most-famous dive sites at San Benedicto Island - it is considered the premier spot for interacting
with giant manta rays in the whole of the Socorro chain, as they congregate here to
be cleaned by clarion angelfish. It is a large pinnacle that rises up from the depths to
within 20ft of the surface. Like Roca Partida, the site can be circled several times on a
single dive. As well as the friendly mantas, which seem to bask in the exhaled bubbles
of the divers, you can also expect to see dolphins, sharks and whales.
San Benedicto’s other ‘must-dive’ site is The Canyon. While mantas sometimes put
in an appearance, this site is all about sharks – expect to see silkies, Galapagos sharks
and hammerheads, the latter usually in vast schools numbering hundreds of individual animals.
As with all sites in Socorro, you never know what else might turn up out of the blue.
Guadalupe Island Guadalupe Island is located some 200 miles
southwest of Ensenada in Mexico on the Pacific coast of the Baja Peninsula. It is a rugged
volcanic island, 25 miles long and with its highest point measuring over 4,000ft. It is
a dramatic, awe-inspiring location, but it just provides the backdrop for the real stars
of the show – great white sharks. Itineraries out to Guadalupe are generally
quite short, five nights or less, but during that period you will be enjoying plenty of
up close and personal water time with these magnificent ocean predators each and every
day. Generally, guests will spend the days rotating
in and out of the surface shark cages – it is normal to have up to 45 minutes at a time
in the water, where your air is supplied via a surface-supplied air source, or hookah system
– essentially a regulator on a long hose. With the water temperature being 69 degrees
Fahrenheit, it is advisable to wear a 5-7mm wetsuit complete with hood, gloves and boots,
but even still, after extended periods in the cage you will be glad to get out and grab
a hot drink. Once you’ve warmed up, though, you’ll be raring to get back into the thick
of the action once again. For those suitably qualified, several vessels
also have submersible cages, where you will be suspended mid-water and have some completely
different encounters to those on the surface. With the excellent visibility, you can expect
to enjoy some of the most phenomenal great white shark sightings in the world, and while
this might only be a short trip compared with other liveaboard adventures around the planet,
it is one that will live with you for a long time after you return home.
We have teamed up with Aggressor Liveaboards for this series of short video tours around
some of the world’s best diving destinations, and the Socorro Aggressor, one of the latest
additions to the fleet, runs eight-night charters to the Socorros from mid-November to the end
of June, and you can expect to rack up an average of 23 dives on the trip. From August
to early November, the vessel moves to Guadalupe Island, where it runs six day/five night itineraries,
which includes unlimited diving in the surface cages, and at least three dives in the submersible
cages. The Socorro Aggressor is 135 feet long, and
has 13 staterooms for its 26 passengers. It has a large air-conditioned salon, spacious
sun deck, a bar for apres-dive drinks, and a complete photo/video centre.
There is so much more to the Socorros and Guadalupe Island than we have shown here,
but it gives you a taster for these fantastic diving destinations. Have you dived either
the Socorros or Guadalupe Island? What were some of your most-memorable moments? Leave
your comments below, and if you have a question, fire away – if we can’t answer, maybe
someone in our community will be able to. Remember, if you enjoyed this video, be sure
to subscribe to our YouTube Channel, and check out our ever-growing playlist for more educational
and inspirational videos. As always, stay safe – and if you are going
diving, enjoy!