March is an ideal time to plan a kayak tour of Isla Espiritu Santo, one of the most pristine and intact ecosystems in the Sea of Cortez. Springtime in Mexico is the ideal time for exploring, when the summer heat has not yet reached its peak, the winter winds begin to die down, and the Sea of Cortez is calm. March, April and May bring warmer air and less wind, but since water temperatures lag behind air temperatures, the scuba diving and snorkeling season has not quite yet begun and the best exploring options are above the waters. Isla Espiritu Santo is situated 16 miles north of CostaBaja Resort and Marina, and 20 miles north of La Paz.

Kayaking is simple here — almost anyone can do this trip, with a guide, even without prior experience. Guided same-day tours usually take 3-4 hours, but you might want to consider an overnight camping excursion since there is more to see than you can fit into a mere few hours.



The Travel Magazine, a British publication, sent its best travel experts across the globe in search of the 12 best beaches in the world. After an entire year of traveling more than 26,800 miles and across 6 continents to visit more than 1,000 beaches, only one beach in all of Mexico made their February 2007 issue’s Top 12 list: Enseñada Grande on Isla Espiritu Santo. The authors write, “Uninhabited Espiritu Santo, absurdly beautiful, is the jewel in the crown: the sea is so turquoise it’s like swimming in a bottle of Curaçao. Once ashore you’ll find wedding-cake white sands, nail-varnish pink volcanic rocks, clouds of yellow butterflies and strange 300-year old boojum trees.”

Of all the 900-plus islands in the Sea of Cortez, Isla Espiritu Santo (or “Island of the Holy Spirit”) has the most intact ecosystem in the region. At low tide, fiddler crabs scuttle along the sand flats; shore birds skitter along the water’s edge, dipping their bills into the sand to feed; stately great blue herons and snowy egrets slowly flap their way to a farther shore as you approach; and long lines of brown pelicans that nest on Isla Espiritu Santo soar across the bays. The flora and fauna that are protected on Isla Espiritu Santo include several animals that are found nowhere else in the world: the blacktailed jack rabbit, ground squirrel and two species of snake. It is also home to ringtail cats, wild Cimarron goats, bats, lizards, five species of marine turtles, resident sea lions, migratory and regional bird species, 53 regional endemic plant species, rare cacti, and one endemic cactus found only on Isla Espiritu Santo. The waters surrounding the island support coral reefs, resident colonies of sea lions, and 500 species of fish. And of course, in deep waters, whales, dolphins, manta rays, and much more.

The island was purchased from the local Ejido Bonfil community, turned over to the Mexican government for environmental safeguarding, and was designated as a protected area in 1978. After years of environmental campaigning, Isla Espiritu Santo was declared a World Heritage Biodiversity Site by UNESCO in July of 2005. In the forefront of these efforts were the developers of CostaBaja Resort and Marina who felt strongly that the island should be preserved. With help from US environmental groups including the Nature Conservancy, the World Wildlife Fund, and many local residents, over $3 million was raised to successfully preserve the island in its natural state.

Isla Espiritu Santo also consists of Isla Partida. The islands are separated at high tide, but joined together by an isthmus — a narrow strip of land that bridges two larger areas of land. As the isthmus can be waded across when the waters recede at low tide, they are considered as one area, totaling 23,383 acres, which hikers can easily cross in an hour. The islands are predominately comprised of alternating layers of black lava and pink-toned volcanic ash. On the eastern side of Isla Partida, steep, rocky cliffs offer a sheer drop to the sea and show obvious signs of faulting and geological inconformity. Only one or two rocky beaches can be used to land a skiff, and only the indentation between the two islands is an acceptable anchorage for cruising boats.

On the western side of the islands, the layered geology is equally interesting. In areas where the layers of softer ash have been cut by rivers and filled in by subsequent lava flows, or where a softer layer has eroded beneath a harder layer, the result leaves a pink frosting dripping over the rocky cliffs. While the study of the island geology is an attraction to some, boating, fishing, camping, hiking, snorkeling, scuba diving, and the study of natural history draws others. Reef fish are plentiful along the rocky shores, including angelfish, wrasse, Moorish idols, the chameleon-like trumpetfish, and countless tropical fish of every size and description. White sand beaches on the south and southeastern end of Isla Espiritu Santo are a beachcomber’s delight. Each beach is backed by a canyon, steep on Isla Partida, and gentle in inclination at the southern end of Isla Espiritu Santo. Behind the southern beaches are mangrove swamps and farther up the canyon, the landscape changes to scrubby, desert growth. Embudo canyon, at the northern tip of Isla Partida, ends abruptly at the edge of a volcanic fault cliff. Beyond it lies the small island of Los Islotes, where you can snorkel with friendly sea-lions who will swim out from the rocks to greet and play with you.

Isla Espiritu Santo is a must-do part of your Sea of Cortez adventure. There is no better spot for a day of hiking and exploring, followed by a picnic dinner-by-campfire on the beach while watching the kaleidoscope sunset meld into luminous starry nights.