DIVE ADVICE TRAVEL - Malpelo & Coiba

Our good friends from the Undersea Hunter group of liveaboards used to regularly visit Malpelo Island in combination with cruises to Cocos Island.

Due to the long and often arduous crossing between Cocos and Malpelo, the Undersea Hunter boats are now concentrating solely on Cocos expeditions, leaving the Malpelo field open to enterprising liveaboards from Panama and Colombia.

We are presently working with 4 boats which have differing degrees of creature comforts, but all of which are committed to adventurous - and safe - diving.

I hope you'll read on for details of Malpelo diving and descriptions of the vessels we're using for these trips then contact is to chat about your needs and preferences.

Cheers, Dom

The Diving

Liveaboards

Overview Malpelo & Coiba

Malpelo Island, Colombia

This is a wild and spectacular marine environment, renowned for its abundance and quantity of schooling shark and big marine animal encounters.

The stark and dramatic Malpelo Island is located in the Pacific Ocean 314 miles (506 kilometers) off the coast of Buenaventura, Colombia. A small Colombian Navy garrison has been in place since 1986 and in 1996 was recognized as a Colombian Fauna and Flora Sanctuary, with a marine protected area of six miles around the island. On July 12th, 2006 the Malpelo Fauna and Flora Sanctuary was declared a Natural World Heritage Site by the World Heritage Committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Malpelo Island is formed by the remnants of a large submarine volcanic ridge that stretches for 150 miles, from northeast to southwest. The Malpelo ridge rises from depths of 13,123 feet (4000 meters) to reveal itself as the tiny, solitary rock of Malpelo.

Malpelo is located at a site of convergence of different major currents in the Pacific Ocean: the cold Humboldt current (south-north), the warm North-Equatorial (west-east) counter-current, and from January to March, the cold cyclonic Panama current (north-south).

These conflicting cold currents and warm equatorial currents create conditions ripe for a sea rich in nutrients and therefore also rich in marine species.

Coiba National Park, Panama

Coiba National Park, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of Panama's most beautiful natural wildlife preserves. With over 1,700 hectares of coral reefs, some more than 5,000 years old, Coiba and its surrounding 38 islands are home to over 760 species of fish, 33 species of sharks and rays plus over 20 species of marine mammals.

Coiba Island is the keystone of marine reproduction for this Pacific marine corridor. Coiba boasts encounters with large schools of big fish and opportunity to observe healthy coral reefs, several species of shark, giant mantas, schooling rays, whales and dolphins. Coiba is blessed with a great diversity of habitat and is home to an array of marine species.

Known as The Devils Island of Central America, Coiba is home to many endemic species, both land and marine species, and is covered in a carpet of lush primary tropical rain forest, mangroves and dotted with deserted beaches.

You can access Malpelo and Coiba Islands from either Colombia or Panama.

The Diving

The whole year is considered good for scuba diving at Malpelo, with temperatures ranging from 14°C in January and February to 28°C later in the year.

There are approximately 20 dive spots and it's a paradise for shark lovers! This area has one of the biggest Hammerhead Shark populations in the world, in addition to Silkies, White tips, whale sharks, and the famous “monster “ shark, plus countless schools of fish, several Ray species , and the giant Manta.

You'll find plenty of other amazing wildlife: hundreds of morays swimming in open water near the walls, schools of barracuda, turtles, dolphins, schools of mantas and spotted eagle rays, whale sharks, white-tip sharks, bull sharks, schools of silky sharks, galapagos sharks, amberjacks, tunas, snappers, groupers and huge schools of jack fish.

But still, what makes Malpelo unique in the world is the incredible concentration of Hammerheads.

They swim in schools of hundreds are usually visible between 10 and 30 meters deep.

Swimming peacefully from morning to night, they seem indifferent to what happens around them. Diving with them is a once in a lifetime experience!

Liveaboards from Panama

Inula

Inula is a comfortable 79-foot catamaran with five guest cabins accommodating a maximum of nine divers. Departing from David, Panama, if offers a variety of itineraries and is an excellent choice for small group charters. Onboard you will find both Rebreather and Nitrox support.

The cabins onboard include a small single cabin, two small cabins with an upper and a lower bunk and two larger cabins with two lower beds. All cabins share two showers and two toilets.

The lounge area has a large table for everyone to eat together and lots of windows for light and sea breezes. There is flat-screen television, and DVD player with a library of movies. Outside you will find both covered and open deck space, and the fun catamaran hammock that suspends you over the open sea.

Inula’s itineraries range from six to fifteen nights and take in the remote Malpelo Island and Panama’s Coiba Nature Reserve with an occasional trip to the Cocos Island. For dates please see our Availability page.

Yemaya

Yemaya is a 115-foot liveaboard with eight cabins for a maximum of 16 guests.

The common areas onboard are spacious and comfortable. Many large windows make all areas of the boat, including the cabins, bright and airy.

Expertly fitted for the demanding diver, Yemaya offers an easy access to the water through a large dive platform with a ladder, a camera table with a rinse tank, low-pressure air hoses and storage and two showers. There are also two 25-foot skiffs and plenty of kayaks onboard.

Most diving days consist of two dives in the morning and one in the afternoon, with several night diving opportunities provided throughout each trip.

Yemaya offers itineraries of different duration to Coiba, Malpelo and Cocos. See our Availability pages for dates and spaces available.

Liveaboards from Colombia

Nemo

Nemo is an 82 foot with a width of 32.8 feet. She has 7 cabins, five with single bed and a bunk on top and two with double beds all with private bathroom with hot water. She accommodates a maximum of 14 divers.

Outside you will find spacious areas for sunbathing, an area that can be used as dining room or lounge area, a diving center and the configuration of the boat allows easy access in and out of the water.

Onboard are two kayaks and two motorized inflatable boats for transfer to the dive sites.

Her itineraries include trips to Gorgona and Malpelo from Colombia. For dates please see our Availability page.

Sea Wolf

Sea Wolf has nine cabins for guests (3 singles, 3 doubles, 3 triples) all with twin beds, private baths and air conditioning.

She has large outdoor areas, including an open veranda on the upper deck with deck chairs, benches, tables, chairs, bar area and TV.

In case of inclement weather conditions, the outdoor seating area can be enclosed allowing meals to always be served in an outdoor setting.

Large meals feature cuisine with a touch of local color.

Starting from the port of Buenaventura, Colombia, Malpelo is reached in less than 15 hours at sea. Her itineraries include trips to Gorgona and Malpelo. For dates please see our Availability page.

Please feel free to contact us directly for further information.
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