Anchorage· Isla Magdalena· Mexico
Bahía Santa María (Baja Pacific)
24° 45.6′ N · 112° 13.5′ W · approximate
A huge, nearly uninhabited bay indented three by six miles into Isla Magdalena just inside Cabo San Lázaro - easy to enter, sheltered from the northwest by black rock mountains, ringed by white sand and mangroves, and the Baja Ha-Ha's second stop.
Practical
Coordinate is approximate: placed in the north end of the bay (GeoNames bay centre 24.731 N 112.196 W; Cabo San Lázaro light 24.793 N 112.302 W), where The Log and the Ha-Ha anchor in prevailing NW conditions - stay well outside the breakers. Open to the SW: summer storm swell rolls in, so in a southerly threat continue about 20 nm to Man of War Cove inside Mag Bay. No fuel, water or services, no cell service; landing through the shore break is tricky. Panga fishermen run a seasonal camp up a mangrove creek; Bob Hoyt's Mag Bay Outfitters (VHF 16) runs fishing charters and helps with the Ha-Ha's on-site immigration check-in. Walk the low dune berm on the east side to look across into Magdalena Bay. Baja Ha-Ha 2026: leg 2 from Turtle Bay starts November 7, beach party November 10, leg 3 to Cabo starts November 12 at 7 am.
Best for
Beautiful, protected wilderness anchorage in NW weather
Season
Oct-May; open to SW swell in summer
Nearby
- Cabo San Lázaro4.6 NM away
- Puerto San Carlos (Mag Bay) Port of Entry and Fuel6.2 NM away
- Puerto San Carlos Whale-Watching Pangas6.4 NM away
- Puerto San Carlos Groceries, Pemex and Restaurants6.5 NM away
- Bahía Magdalena Anchorage (Man of War Cove)8.7 NM away
- Baja Bash Northbound Weather Windows8.7 NM away
- Puerto Magdalena Village (Man of War Cove)8.8 NM away
- Belcher Point Anchorage (Mag Bay)13.3 NM away