Trip Report Review: Blue Nation Diving in Loreto, BCS

[JamesBon92007]

We (girlfriend and I) just got back from two weeks in Loreto, BCS. We dove with Blue Nation and they are great. Monica appears to do much of the scheduling of the operations and Yago is an excellent dive master, guide, tour guide, historian, etc. Captain Victor has ojos grandes--he can spot a pod of dolphins or a whale from several kilometers away! At $135 US for a two-tank dive they are a bit pricey but tend to give discounts for multiple days of diving. I did three trips, one to each of the three nearby islands. In addition to carefully selected dive spots you also get all of your questions answered, personal attention, and lots of great information about the history and animal life of the area. I don't know if they offer larger, steel tanks etc and we just dove with AL80s. They appear to be able to supply you with all of the usual scuba gear, if needed, plus they also offer snorkeling trips (sometimes combined). They supply drinking water using non-disposable cups, cookies and cakes between dives, and after the second dive we landed on beautiful island beaches and had a healthy lunch/snack.

I suggest renting a car unless you are staying near the marina. There are few taxis and I did not see anything resembling a bus or colectivo. I had pre-arranged a rental car through Alamo and felt like I was being robbed when I went to pick up the car. They would not accept my voucher, nor would they accept the car coverage through my credit card company. It was either pay for their insurance or don't get the car.

Loreto is very "laid back" and many restaurants are only open for dinner, not open at all on Sunday, and Monday is questionable too. We ate at several places and I can only recommend Mi Loreto and Caesar's. There was one other that we liked but I can't think of the name. It may have been Orlando. The Zopilote Brewery (buzzard or vulture, that is) was OK but nothing special, but then I don't drink beer. The best prices for groceries seems to be at Super Ley Express (aka Casa Ley). Ley is also the only place in town (or so I've been told) with BanaMex ATM machines. I only pay $32 pesos in fees to withdraw pesos with my "no foreign transaction fees" ATM card. I found the prices to be higher, and sometimes outrageous, at El Pescador on Salvatierra near Independencia. There is no WalMart, Chedraui, Mega, Hooters, or Sr. Frogs. One of their main industries seems to be sport fishing and several restaurants advertise "You Hook We Cook." During a total of nearly four weeks on two separate trips I've seen one cruise ship there.

Although there are a couple of public beaches in town everyone I talked to said to go North for one hour for a really good beach (El Requeson and El Burro). We didn't make it there this trip. We did, however, go to the Santo Javier Mission and it was very interesting and an easy drive but they were doing road work at the time. With the road work it took 50 minutes. We had a fruit plate at La Palopa near the mission along with cold drinks. The mango was the best I've ever eaten. They even gave us a freshly-picked mango as we were leaving .

What kind of sea life you will see apparently depends upon the time of year. Mobula rays are known to be common around May and I've read there are more whales to be seen in the winter months. If you are happy just being with vast amounts of small fishes then it probably doesn't matter much when you go. From what I've been told the whale sharks don't come that far up the peninsula but can be seen near La Paz or Los Cabos.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Thanks for the report. I've become somewhat interested in Loreto. Disappointed to learn I'd need a car though. I also wish you sounded a bit more excited about the diving there.

Did you get Nitrox for that $ amount?

 

[JamesBon92007]

Thanks for the report. I've become somewhat interested in Loreto. Disappointed to learn I'd need a car though. I also wish you sounded a bit more excited about the diving there.

Did you get Nitrox for that $ amount?

We weren't using Nitrox but Blue Nation probably has info about that on their web site. It's not that the diving wasn't good, it's just that it was very similar to, say, Puerto Vallarta where everything costs a lot less and you don't need a car. That was the first time I've been diving with sea lions in over 50 years so that was pretty cool. The scenery from the mainland and on the islands is amazing and if I was going to build a town on the Sea of Cortez then Loreto would have been my first choice. I've never seen a mobula ray so I may return when they are around, but they've been spotting many Mantas near Vallarta so there's no shortage of rays there

 

[Sushi Boy]

This is working it's way up my short list. Wish it was easier to get to from Houston.

What were the water temps & viz while you were there?

 

[JamesBon92007]

The visibility was only around 30-40 feet at Isla Coronados but was easily 40-60 feet at Isla del Carmen and Danzante. I didn't pay any attention to the temps when we hit thermoclines but above them it was around 80 F. I wore a full 2.5mm suit and there were times when I went back up past the thermocline as I was getting a little chilly. My girlfriend wore a 3mm shorty and didn't comment much so I guess she was warm enough In the cooler months I've been told a 5mm to 7mm full suit is necessary. I'll check the dive log on my girlfriend's computer which should say what the minimum temp was. I was using an old Uwatec that doesn't have a thermometer.

For us it's about a 22 hour drive from near Los Angeles. The only airline that flies there from around here is Alaska and not every day. For us it's only about 1 1/2-2 hours of flying time.

@chillyinCanada : maybe my girlfriend (merrydiver) will comment here. She absolutely loved the dives, especially at Danzante. Maybe I'm just getting too old

Every once-in-a-while I find a dive op that is so excellent that I wouldn't consider even looking for another--Blue Nation is one of those! In Puerto Vallarta it's PV Ocean Tours. On Cozumel there are so many that I just pick the most convenient.

Edit: the lowest temp I could find for her dives was 76 F. It seemed considerably colder than that. Maybe I'm pushing the button wrong.

 

[chillyinCanada]

The visibility was only around 30-40 feet at Isla Coronados but was easily 40-60 feet at Isla del Carmen and Danzante. I didn't pay any attention to the temps when we hit thermoclines but above them it was around 80 F. I wore a full 2.5mm suit and there were times when I went back up past the thermocline as I was getting a little chilly. My girlfriend wore a 3mm shorty and didn't comment much so I guess she was warm enough In the cooler months I've been told a 5mm to 7mm full suit is necessary. I'll check the dive log on my girlfriend's computer which should say what the minimum temp was. I was using an old Uwatec that doesn't have a thermometer.

For us it's about a 22 hour drive from near Los Angeles. The only airline that flies there from around here is Alaska and not every day. For us it's only about 1 1/2-2 hours of flying time.

@chillyinCanada : maybe my girlfriend (merrydiver) will comment here. She absolutely loved the dives, especially at Danzante. Maybe I'm just getting too old

Every once-in-a-while I find a dive op that is so excellent that I wouldn't consider even looking for another--Blue Nation is one of those! In Puerto Vallarta it's PV Ocean Tours. On Cozumel there are so many that I just pick the most convenient.

Edit: the lowest temp I could find for her dives was 76 F. It seemed considerably colder than that. Maybe I'm pushing the button wrong.

Your girlfriend is a tough one if not cold in a shorty at 80F. I'm cold in a shorty at 82F. Heck, I wear my full 3mm in 84F

 

[JamesBon92007]

Your girlfriend is a tough one if not cold in a shorty at 80F. I'm cold in a shorty at 82F. Heck, I wear my full 3mm in 84F

She's from Minnesota so anything less than frozen is "not cold."

 

[Themerrydiver]

Your girlfriend is a tough one if not cold in a shorty at 80F. I'm cold in a shorty at 82F. Heck, I wear my full 3mm in 84F

You betcha I'm tough!! Blue Nation is a great, professional dive op and they take good care of you with homemade lunches on the white sand beaches. Having said that, on to what I liked about the dives. The first two dives were pretty cool with decent visibility. An added attraction were the dozens of dolphins and whales we saw from the boat on the way there. We actually stopped to see and appreciate their glory. The second day of diving was really really good! Visibility was great with lots of sea life. Saw the biggest Moray eel ever! Seemed like his head was as big as mine! Tons of fish! And rays too! Yago is a super dive master and lead us through some beautiful dives. No, it's not like Coz which is a favorite of ours, but it was fun and exciting to see different sea life. The Sea of Cortez in Loreto should not be missed. Different and beautiful. Glad we went there.

 

[Themerrydiver]

Your girlfriend is a tough one if not cold in a shorty at 80F. I'm cold in a shorty at 82F. Heck, I wear my full 3mm in 84F

I did feel the thermoclime , just didn't care since I wasn't in it for a long period! I seem kind of immune to it since it doesn't last long and I keep moving around. I don't like feeling "confined" so I prefer a shorty suit whenever possible but do have a full 3 mm suit for the colder water when I need it. I forgot to bring my wet suit (duh) one time in Coz and shore dived for about 80 minutes and felt great. Very freeing. Unfortunately, jelly fish seem attracted to me so I had to keep a close eye out for them.

 

[Azur Salino]

I just found this post!
Thanks Jim and Mary for the honest feedback and good vibes. It was great to have you here and I'll make sure we cross paths again in the future, either here or in Cozumel

Jim did an excellent job answering all the questions so I will just add some extra info:

As mentioned, Loreto has all the advantages and disadvantages of an small, emerging dive destination. Although the town is easily walkable, a car is super recommended as it will allow you to explore all the attractions in the vecinity, which are fantastic. Some guests have had bad experiences with the car rental agencies lately as it seems they are not providing complete information to the visitors. It appeares that they hide some insurance costs that need to be payed upon arrival. I don't know whether is one agency only or a common practice, but definitely not nice.

Tour operators are quite small and the boats normally host maximum 8 people. The marina is also basic (although in the way to be enhanced next year!) and that limits the group sizes and makes logistics a bit more complicated. Loreto is growing a lot lately and we hope to be able to catter for bigger groups and lesser expenses!

We are the only shop doing NITROX. We manually blend the mixes so it has to be ordered with one day notice. Loreto has virtually unlimited divesites. We probably visit 40 different ones on a regular basis but new divesites keep being discovered that are amazing. Although NITROX diving is only taking off here, there is a plethora of sites that can only be truly enjoyed with it.
Recently we have uploaded a 3D map of the main islands and some info about the sites. It's a work in progress, but with that and the video section you can make a good idea of what to expect. The Sea of Cortez is highly seasonal and every season offers different stuff too.

Links:

3D map: Loreto Bay National Park - Blue Nation Baja
Videos: https://www.bluenationbaja.com/loreto-underwater/ (bottom of page)