I've been thinking about Mulege and the general area for a few years now. I actually bought a 22' Boston Whaler with the intention of boating the area. I'm in Seattle so it's a bit of a drive. Anyway, my wife and I love exploring new beaches and warm water. We've been to Mazatlan, Cabo, and Puerto Vallarta many times. I recently spoke to someone who visited Loreto and Mulege. They told me sting rays are lay in the shallow water near beaches and can be very hazardous. One of their friends was struck in the ankle by a sting ray with lots swelling and such. My question is, are there lots of hazardous water varmits to be careful of in this area?
In the Sea of Cortez sting rays are sometimes quite thick and should always be dealt with cautiously. I have not seen a lot of them in the Conception bay but have heard from others that they are there. We do a shuffle and make lots of disturbance when we know they are present and that seems to scare them away. Sometimes when diving for clams, I have seen what I thought was a clam to find out it was in fact a buried sting ray.
ALWAYS shuffle your feet upon entering any ocean water and keep doing so. No, you don't need to be spastic, just DO NOT lift your feet and walk as you would on dry land. I've seen many a vacation ruined by getting hit by a ray. They are not aggressive and will move quickly out of your way as you approach. You will even see them swim off as you slide your feet along the bottom. This is how you should really walk whenever you are in the water. A lot of the time a ray gets the blame when in fact it is a scorpion fish that lays in the very shallow water, especially around Punto Chivato. I have spent a total of 11 summers in and around Mulege and have never been hit. Yet!
when we swim at chivato we usually where hard rubber dive shoes in hopes of avoiding any accidents. iam not really sure how high up the stingray can actually strike, does anyone know this for sure?. anyway iam trying to have dive booties customized to fit for swimming yet stingray proof. hopefully i will have success.
ok more to add to this chat line. i have been concerned about the rays in baja also since some of my friends have been struck and wow the pain was horrible. anyway, foreverlast.com sells stingray boots relatively cheap that you slip on and can enjoy the water without the worry of the stingrays. hope this helps. ive order two sets hopefully they will be what iam looking for.
i checked out the everlast.com website and they say, "We do not imply nor advertise that these boots are Sting-Ray "Proof", but simply that they will give protection to the lower leg and foot area." i'm sure they would help but the stingray barbs are razor sharp. usually people are hit just above the ankle. no matter what shuffle. i've never been hit in 60 years of surfing, diving, snorkeling.
thanks garth, i was wondering where most strikes are on the body. i got my boots from everlast, and they are really thick. i would be suprised if a barb would penetrate these. but i will continue shuffling anyway. my friends have been struck stepping off surfboard and dingy. iam just looking for any advantage i can get.
Wow, Scorpion fish and sting rays. The boots sound like a great plan. Maybe a walking stick also to let the critters know your coming. Everyone's info was helpful. I'll be sure and check with locals before swimming on the beaches.
well i got my everlast boots last week. while they are not the most fashionable color (tanish/orange) they are comfortable and with the four layer of vulcanized rubber, i feel confident they will stop the stingray and scorpion from hitting me. i think its always good to have a plan B . iam getting them for all my kids . hope this helps someone
hi, can you or anyone get me in touch with miguel and claudia quintano--they use to own the mulege divers shop--old friends of mine and am coming to mulege soon and would like to see them, thank you, rojirio
