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mission church in LaPaz

The Last Unspoiled Sea Bastion

By Lonnie Ryan

The Sea of Cortez flanks the eastern side of the Baja peninsula, between Baja and mainland Mexico. Perhaps the most beautiful unspoiled  area on the planet. Jacques Cousteau once called the area, this Sea of Cortez, “the aquarium of the world.” Apparently names by sea captian Francisco de Ulloa afer he sailed the entire perimeter of the body of water in 1539 and 1540 at the command of the most famous of all Spanish conquistadors Hernan Cortes. Previous attempts to colonize the peninsula 4 years beforehand by Cortes resulted in an aborted and futile spearhead into the seas adjacent lands. The name of Mar de Cortes thereafter appeared intermittently on maps of the region, alternating with Mar Vermejo, or Vermillion Sea, in reference to the color of the reflections caused by the huge numbers of pelagic crabs, until the MExican government officially renamed it the Gulf of California, early in the 20th century. Modern day visiting sailors and those that live in the area and on her shores, prefer to call the green and blue aquatic body by its more common nmae, the Sea of Cortez.

The sea is more or less 700 miles long with an average width of 93 miles. It is divided into 4 regions, based by depth, bottom contours and marine life. The northern quarter is shallow in relation to the other zones farther south because of silt deposits by the Colorado river. The next zone farther south, encompasses the Midriff Islands, where underwater canyons reach up to 27,000 feet and stron currents bring nutrients up from the bottom while aerating the water. In the 3rd zone, canyon depths double, silting is minimal, and water temps decrease dramatically. In the last zone, below La Paz, around the tip of the cape, in Cabo San Lucas, the Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific, and their respective currents battle, producing some wicked riptides. This means that although the cape has the warmest waters in winter months, the beaches are known for their trecherous swimming conditions.

Balandra Bay in Sea of Cortez

Within the sea you wil find a myriad of islands which are a result of geological split between the mainland of Mexico and the Baja as the earths continents evolved into the shapes so familiar to us today.  25 of these islands are named and are arranged in such a way that the visiting mariner can travel easily from island to island up the sea from La Paz to the Bay of Cenception and aside from the need for supplies, become delighfully lost within the isolated environment of solitude with a sense of old world pioneering discovery.

 

 The upper half of the eastern Baja peninsula is largely only accessible from the sea due to the main road south being routed along the western coast.

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The Sea of Cortéz is home for countless species of marine plants and animals, forming such a unique ecosystem that it was baptized by Jacques Cousteau as “The Aquarium of the World.” Dotted with underwater mountains and canyons, the Sea of Cortéz circulates huge amounts of nutrient-enriched water, producing seasonally heavy plankton blooms which in turn contribute to the massive diversity of tropical and pelagic fish found throughout its waters.

grey whales are friendly

In addition to the Gray Whale calving migration to the three major warm-water lagoons, the Sea of Cortéz hosts resident pods of various species of sea mammals including Sperm whales, Orcas, Humpback whales, Blue whales and Fin whales, often visible while sailing in these rich waters. Sea lion colonies and transient gigantic pods of dolphins lure thousands of watersports enthusiasts who congregate in La Paz, attracted by the opportunity of interacting with these friendly creatures. Giant mantas, massive whale sharks and impressive numbers of sharks, especially hammerheads, have made La Paz shine among the best worldwide scuba diving destinations. There are more than 25 first-class dive spots around the many islands surrounding the bay of La Paz, Espíritu Santo, San José and Cerralvo.

The surrounding desert is an intriguing, unique and extremely beautiful ecosystem full of endless surprises. Over centuries, its flora and fauna evolved endemic characteristics due to their relative isolation. Strange looking valleys of sentinel-like cardon, primitive cirios, elephant trees and thorny chollas make for some of the 4,000 different plants that form the spiny green carpet on the sandy earth. Many resident birds and migratory species are found here as they winter and pass by on their migration to southern locations. Hawks, wrens, woodpeckers, the great roadrunner, the Xantus Hummingbird and the Gray Thrasher are common sights. Desert Bighorn, foxes, coyotes, pumas, desert mice and squirrels are abundant.

Thousands of years ago, a primitive tribe of hunters and gatherers created countless rupestrian paintings in caves and gorges depicting life size human figures, hunting scenes, families, animals and even what appear to be extraterrestrials. The largest concentration of this spectacular prehistoric art is found in the Sierra de San Francisco and Guadalupe, however, hiking through the numerous ravines and streambeds of the south allows visitors to discover many of these astonishing sites near La Paz.

Just south of the city, at the edge of the Tropic of Cancer, stands the Sierra de la Laguna. This mountainous mass, declared a biosphere reserve in June of 1994, rises to an altitude of almost 2,200 meters, encompassing an extraordinary Darwinian paradise of birds and endemic plants. Its climate and vegetation change dramatically relative to the elevation. From sea level to 400 meters, the xerophilous brushwood prevails; from 400 to 1,200 meters, the driest of the semi-arid climates predominates, with the characteristic semi-deciduous forest, scattered with plants not found in other parts of the peninsula. From 1,200 meters to the highest peaks, the temperate climate and the abundance of rainfall favor the undisputed kingdom of pines and piñon-oaks. As you ascend the sierras, the landscape transforms radically, with sudden streams flowing into crystalline pools.