La Bufadora, Mexico | 2022. 6. 18-19
The past weekend, I joined Chris, Doug, and Timo for another adventure at La Bufadora in Mexico. I rode with Doug and left San Diego in the early morning on Saturday at 5 am. Our travel down to Baja was smooth. At 7 am, we arrived at the boat ramp and met up with Chris and Timo. Jeko, the boat captain, came around 8:15. We geared up and headed to Todos Santos Island to dive the shipwreck.
The weather forecast showed high surfs and deep low tide. As the day started to warm up, the wind also picked up. Our ride out to the wreck was bumpy. Another boat with four divers followed us for the same dive. At the dive site, the surface was choppy, despite the protection from the island. We quickly geared up and jumped in as a group. To avoid the current, we dropped down immediately.
Things turned calm in the water. I hoped to see the wreck quickly, but the first 30 water was a thick brown layer with little visibility. The thick layer disappeared at about 60 feet deep, and the water became clear with a blue hue. I was happy about the excellent visibility. However, there was no wreck. I stayed on top of the group and searched for a few minutes. I knew the chance of finding the wreck was little. I slowly surfaced.
Once on the surface, I knew I had drifted far. The boat came and guided me back to the right drop-down location. Following Jeko’s instruction, I drop down again. As the thick layer slowly faded in front of my eyes, the wreck appeared, laying peacefully on the sandy bottom. I felt no current and had enough air left for a decent dive. It was a great relief.
The other divers were not at the wreck. Starting from the bow, I slowly cruised to the stern. This visit was my fourth dive at this wreck. By this time, I had known its structure well. But something new to me appeared – a thick layer of tiny fish covering the wreck’s center. It was a large school of juvenile blacksmiths. When I reached the bow and turned around, a dense school of blacksmiths slowly descended from the shallower water. They formed a vortex and slowly wrapped around the wreck. Suddenly, the wreck was alive. Fish schools, large and small, fast and slow, filled the water, like a symphony played on a stage. Instead of staying on the wreck like I saw them before, the blacksmith school swam away, fading slowly into the abyss. I was excited to have such a great experience.
Back to the boat, I learned that all the other divers continued searching for the wreck without success. The four divers on the other boat had left to another site, but we decided to stay for the second dive. This time, we were cautious during the drop-down and found the wreck without much effort. However, the water turned a little murkier this time. I circled the wreck a few times, but the blacksmith school never showed up. We surfaced and headed back to the ramp.
We decided to camp on the ‘real’ La Bufadora campsite, on the cliff near the old boat ramp. I set up my tent a few feet away from the edge of the cliff. The view and the sound were breathtaking.
On the second day, we decided to dive the pinnacles. The ocean seemed a lot flatter than yesterday. We decided to go to some far pinnacles south of the old boat ramp. As soon as the boat left the protection of the harbor, the wind and the surf turned wild. We gave up the original plan and decided to go to pinnacles nearby. Our first dive was at Whitrock – the most dived pinnacles at La Bufadora. We dropped down on the south side of the rock. I immediately dropped down to much quieter water at depth. Compared last few times I dove here, this time I did not see much kelp. Instead, golden algae, thick strawberry anemones, and sea urchins patches covered the wall. The scene was the La Bufadora in my memory – the color bursting from everywhere and life covering every facet of the rocks. Despite the strong surge, the visibility was spectacular. I enjoyed every minute of the dive.
Our second dive was at the cave near the Whitrock. I came to this cave once before but was not too impressed. This time we dropped down near the tip of the cove with a strong surge surrounding it and descended immediately. The cave was right around the corner. Following the other divers, I entered the cave. This time the cave was different – nudibranchs were everywhere on the sandy bottom. The highlight was a giant rainbow nudibranch (Dendronotus iris) near the cave’s opening. This nudibranch specializes in preying on the tube sea anemone. I decided to wait and observe it. Soon the other divers left the cave. It was quiet in there. The nudibranch slowly approached the anemone and climbed onto its stem. It stuck its teeth out and tried to aim at the center of the anemone. With a sudden burst, the nudibranch attacked the sea anemone. It buried its head into the stem as the anemone retrieved its tenacles. Although I watched this behavior in films, this was the first time I watched it in an actual display. By the time the nudibranch was satisfied, I had needed to go. As I ascended to the surface, a giant fried egg jellyfish passed, drifting along with the current. The jellyfish was the last capture on my camera before I said goodbye and climbed up the boat.
I have been to La Bufodora many times and almost always dived the same sites. Life takes turns to display on the wreck or the rock. Each time, they looked different. I know I will come back again soon.