Marlin / Bait Balls in Baja

Hi Guys,

I am getting a series of trips running November through December for small groups 3 to 5 max at a time for seven day trips to locate and film / photograph Marlin as they hunt bait balls in the Sea of Cortez. This trip is for level headed, seasoned divers with an understanding of the dangers involved.

Please contact me: mark@liquidmocean.com for more info, dates and rates.

Cheers,

Mark.

We have finally got all of the details for this sorted:

Swimming with the ‘Javelin of the Seas’.

Dates:

* Trip 1 – Monday October 26th – Friday October 30th – 5 Ocean Days

* Trip 2 – Monday November 2nd – Friday 6th November – 5 Ocean Days

* Trip 3 – Monday November 9th – Friday 13th November – 5 Ocean Days

Other dates and full charters are available. Please contact us.

Location: La Paz, Baja California

Costs: $4,200.00 per person - Water Activities Only - this excludes flights & accommodation.

Guide: Mark Thorpe

Number of spaces: Min. 2 guests per trip. Max 3 guests.

There are very few places on earth where one can reliably see striped marlin, let alone get in the water with them. However, on this expedition we will be taking things one step further – we will give guests the opportunity to observe these remarkable predators as they hunt baitballs of sardines and anchovies. liquidmocean has teamed up with a collaborator in Baja California who makes regular trips hunting bait balls for his own imaging purposes and has a great deal of experience tracking down these elusive animals. By teaming up with this operator, we will give our guests the best possible chance of an encounter with one of the ocean’s most visually impressive animals.

This unique adventure is only available to a few people at a time – we take a maximum of three people per trip to ensure every guest has the opportunity to fulfill their imaging needs. Speed will be of the essence when tracking down and interacting with these animals. To that end we will only be free-diving, not on SCUBA. Trying to keep up with baitball action is also a frenetic exercise and those attending these trips should be of a physical condition that allows them to repetitively get in and out of small, fast moving tenders.

Daily Routine:

07.30am Wake up call at hotel

08.00am Breakfast

09.00am Depart for boat

09.30am Boat departs for target location

12.00pm Arrive at location

12.00pm – 16.00pm, searching for other imaging opportunities

16.00pm Marlin become active, search for baitballs begins

19.30pm Sunset and low light forces end of activities

22.00pm – 22.30pm Back at dock

23.00pm Return to Hotel

Being on location late in the afternoon means we will give ourselves the best possible chance of locating feeding marlins. However, there will be plenty of other imaging opportunities in the morning and during the day. The areas in which we will operate are well known as established breeding, birthing and feeding grounds for a massive range of cetaceans. From common dolphin to blue whales and everything between, the area is rich in opportunities to interact with any number of animals each day. Other fauna in the region includes sea lions, manta rays, whalesharks, cow nosed rays and a huge variety of sea birds. As we spend most of the day out on the Ocean, we should have plenty of opportunities to get in the water with many different species.

Baitball activity lasts from late October into early December. In order to be completely flexible, one of our principles will be in Mexico for that time period and will be co-ordinating and rotating guests throughout that time. Each trip will run from Monday through to Friday and guests will need to arrange their own itineraries in and out of La Paz. The guests are also responsible for their own hotel arrangements although we can locate suitable accommodation based on individual requirement. Guests should realize that we will be spending little time in the hotel accommodation and if there are concerns regarding security, our collaborator will be happy to store valuables during the day if the guests would like to do so.

Clients wishing to join these trips must understand that there is a very real risk involved when freediving with striped marlin. They are one of the fastest animals in the world – and we are one of the slowest! There have been accounts of unsupervised and spur-of-the-moment swimmers being injured when attempting to interact with these predators. Whilst client safety is paramount on any of liquidmoceans expeditions, we will ask all guest to sign a full waiver, and show proof of comprehensive diving and medical insurances prior to departure.

Dive package includes:

Private boat charter with captain

Lunch, dinner and light refreshments

All local transport between hotel and boat (hotels will arrange airport transfers)

Complimentary liquidmocean rash guard

What to bring:

Sunscreen

Light cotton clothing

Hat/head protection

Sunglasses with good UV protection

5mm Wet Suit

Insect repellant

Sea Sickness tablets if required

Please contact me for further info:

Cheers,

Mark.