Cabo Pulmo

Verified2026-09-30 checkedReefPelagic

A reef the village stopped fishing in 1995, and the biomass came back fivefold.

Depth: 6–30 m20–98 ft
Difficulty: Intermediate
Entry: Boat · Shore
Typical current: Moderate
Coordinates: 23°26.400′N 109°25.200′W
Activities: Scuba · Snorkelling · Freediving

Cabo Pulmo is the only hard coral reef in the Gulf of California and it was fished out by the early nineties. The community asked for a no-take park, got it in 1995, and enforced it themselves — and the fish biomass increased by more than 400% in fifteen years, the largest recovery ever measured in a marine reserve. What that means underwater is a tornado of bigeye trevally you can swim into, bull sharks in the autumn, and mobula rays leaping by the hundred in early summer. It is a shallow, easy, warm dive, and it is the strongest argument in the sea for protection.

An hour by road north of San José del Cabo. Local operators only; the park limits boats and divers.

Best season

ExcellentJul–Oct
GoodNov
FairDec–Jun

Conditions

Water temperature: 31.3°C88°F
Wave height: 0.5 m2 ft
Air temperature: 31.5°C89°F
Wind speed: 4.6 km/h2.9 mph

Updated 2026-10-07 16:15 UTC · Source: Open-Meteo

Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0)

Conditions are reported for information only. Assess the site yourself and follow your guide and your training.

No live conditions for this site yet.

We only show numbers we can attribute to a source.

Sea state and tide

On a date

Tide · 10/7

High06:211.09 m
Low12:040.17 m
High18:081.21 m

Forecast heights against mean sea level. Real tides in a bay, a harbour or over a flat can differ — check an official tide table before you get in.

Pick a day to see its tide

Only wave height and wind are scored, because those are what close a boat ramp or a shore entry. Water temperature is reported and never scored: 12°C is an ordinary dive in a drysuit and punishing in a 3 mm, and a number that cannot see your suit has no business marking it down. Stars do not decide whether you get in — you and your guide do, on the day.

Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0)

Marine life you may see

Bigeye trevallyCaranx sexfasciatusCommon
Munk's devil rayMobula munkianaMay–JulSeasonal
Bull sharkCarcharhinus leucasSeasonal
Green turtleChelonia mydasCommon
Whitetip reef sharkTriaenodon obesusCommon
Yellowfin tunaThunnus albacaresSeasonal

From divers

What people who were in the water reported. Not a forecast, and not a judgement about whether the site is safe to dive.

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