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The Coronados offer divers a remote untamed Baja experience just 16 miles due south of our harbor. Located in Mexican waters, this group consists of three main islands and a smaller islet. They have gone by many names throughout their colorful history since Juan Cabrillo passed them on his way to San Diego in 1542. Today they bear the likely names of North Island, South Island, Middle Island, and Middle Rock.
North Coronado Island:
Lying just to the east of a deepwater canyon, North Island offers the greatest range in surrounding depths for a wide variety of diving profiles. Composed of steep volcanic rock that rises abruptly from the sea, the island is host to a fairly large colony of sea lions.
The island's submerged topography is a jumble of boulders and jointed reef structures that tumble precipitously to sand or cobbles starting at depths from 50 to 140 feet. The usually protected lee side is a favorite first dive that frequently hosts visibility of 60 feet or better. The rugged windward side is an added treat on those rare days when it is calm enough to dive. Patches of purple hydrocorals adorn barren rock reefs at depths of 80 feet or more.
In shallower water, members of the resident sea lion colony entertain with their antics.
Middle Grounds:
The name collectively refers to Middle Coronado Island and the smaller adjacent Middle Rock. Several species of sea birds nest and raise young here. A small harbor seal population supports itself here.
Diving depths are moderate until one moves to the west of either landmark. Shallower depths sport rocky ledges adorned with false eel grass. A little deeper, wildly uplifted bands of rock form deep ledges that provide homes for a wide variety of creatures.
South Island:
Largest of the Los Coronados group, South Island is the site of the only human habitation on the islands. The Republic of Mexico maintains a small naval garrison above a cove on the lee side that once boasted a casino. Fire and the elements have reclaimed the remnants of that by-gone era.
Northern elephant seals and California sea lions share a cove on the windward side that is ringed by high unstable cliffs. To the east, several offshore reefs host the richest invertebrate habitat south of the Northern Channel Islands.
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