Magdalena Bay · Mexico · Channel & pass
Punta Entrada
The 45 m Boca Entrada, deepest water in the bay
Punta Entrada is the headland at the mouth of Magdalena Bay, on the Boca Entrada — the roughly 5.5 km wide central channel that connects the bay to the Pacific. It is the deepest part of the embayment at 45 m, and the water every boat crosses on the way offshore. Trips work it when the swell outside is too big for the banks.
Also known as Boca Entrada.
Where it is and how deep
24.5401° N, 112.0571° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Punta Entrada is a place you pass more often than you dive. It marks the side of the Boca Entrada, the roughly 5.5 km wide channel that connects Magdalena Bay to the open Pacific, and every boat running out to the offshore banks goes through it. On days when the swell outside is too big to put swimmers in, this is where the day gets spent instead of out on the banks.
The channel is the deepest water in the whole embayment, with a maximum of 45 m, and it is where the bay exchanges water with the open Pacific. That makes conditions a function of the tide rather than of the site. What has been published here describes the geography and not a dive profile, so treat any plan as something to settle with the boat on the day rather than something to read off a chart beforehand.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Good |
Season follows Magdalena Bay: The baitball season runs Oct–Dec and peaks in November; outside it the marlin disperse and operators do not run trips.
Know before you go
- The channel connects the bay to the open Pacific and carries the boat traffic heading offshore; dive it on the state of tide the crew picks and stay close to the hull.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Punta Entrada?+
The Boca Entrada channel it sits on is the deepest part of Magdalena Bay, with a maximum depth of 45 m. No dive profile has been published for the headland itself.
Sources
- Bahía Magdalena — Wikipedia
- Punta Entrada (OpenStreetMap) — OpenStreetMap
More dive sites in Magdalena Bay
Pelagic & blue water
Striped marlin hunting sardines offshore of Magdalena Bay, October to early December
Sunk twice in twelve days: aground in 1920, refloated, gone in 45 minutes
Similar dives elsewhere
Collapsed reef blocks sheltering sharks in a protected channel
An overhang whose ceiling opens to a window at 10 m
More than 100 grey reef sharks can patrol the channel mouth
A year-round manta point at 19-25 m inside the channel