Day 6 – Fang Ming & Swanee Reef: Our Final Dives

Martin Gomez   Oct 05, 2026

A Week in the Sea of Cortez Aboard the Valentina

Day 6 – Fang Ming & Swanee Reef: Our Final Dives

And just like that, we had reached Day 6.

Our last day aboard the Valentina.

It is strange how quickly life on a liveaboard becomes normal. Only a few days earlier, we were learning where everything was, meeting the crew, organizing our equipment and getting accustomed to the sound of the anchor and the ringing of the bell.

Now those sounds had become part of our routine.

But this morning felt different.

There were only two dives left.

So the goal was simple:

Enjoy everything.

Enjoy breakfast.

Enjoy the diving.

Enjoy the Sea of Cortez.

Enjoy our fellow divers.

And enjoy these final hours with the crew who had taken care of us throughout this incredible journey.

Our first dive of the morning would be something completely different:

the wreck of the Fang Ming.

Dive #1 – The Fang Ming Wreck

The Fang Ming was intentionally sunk to create an artificial reef and today offers divers the opportunity to explore both the exterior and portions of the interior of the vessel.

One of the interesting features of the wreck is the number of large openings that allow divers to look and move through different sections of the ship.

For our group, Mariana would be leading the dive.

Our descent began along the mooring line, giving everyone an easy reference as we made our way down toward the wreck.

Little by little, the shape of the Fang Ming appeared below us.

And immediately, we could see how much life had taken over the ship.

A Ship That Has Become a Reef

The Fang Ming no longer felt like simply a sunken vessel.

It had become part of the underwater environment.

Schools of fish surrounded the structure, moving around the deck and through the openings.

There was abundant black coral, along with marine growth covering different sections of the wreck.

Large groupers moved around the ship.

And then we found another visitor.

A sea turtle resting around the deck.

After days of diving with sea lions, barracudas, reef fish and mobulas, it seemed appropriate that one of our final dives would add a turtle to the list.

But the Fang Ming had another surprise waiting inside.

A Sea Lion Inside the Wreck

As we explored the interior, we encountered a sea lion inside the ship.

That alone would have been memorable.

But what made the encounter even more interesting was where it was positioning itself.

In an overhead section of the wreck, bubbles exhaled by visiting scuba divers can accumulate against the ceiling and form an air pocket.

The sea lion had apparently discovered it.

Seeing a sea lion inside a shipwreck was one of those strange combinations that made you stop for a moment and simply watch.

Once again, the Sea of Cortez had managed to surprise us.

Exploring the Interior

Mariana did an excellent job leading us through the wreck.

The route felt comfortable and controlled, using the large openings and gradually working our way through the structure while moving from deeper to shallower portions of the dive.

Inside, beams of natural light entered through the openings.

Outside, schools of fish moved around the wreck.

Black coral decorated sections of the structure.

A sea lion had made itself comfortable inside.

A turtle waited around the deck.

And large groupers cruised nearby.

There was a lot to see, but the dive never felt rushed.

That was perhaps the best way to enjoy our final morning underwater.

Slowly.

Carefully.

Taking everything in.

Back to the Mooring Line

Eventually, our exploration of the Fang Ming came to an end.

Just as we had used the line for our descent, we returned to the mooring line for our ascent.

We slowly made our way toward shallower water, completed our safety stop and looked down one last time at the wreck disappearing beneath us.

Then it was back to the surface.

Back to the Zodiac.

And back aboard the Valentina.

One dive remained.

Swanee Reef.

Our final dive of the entire expedition.

And suddenly, nobody was in a hurry for the trip to end.

One Last Dive...

There is something different about putting your equipment on when you know it is going to be the last dive of a trip.

For almost a week, our days had revolved around the same wonderful routine:

Wake up. Eat. Dive. Eat. Rest. Dive again.

We had traveled from Cerralvo Island to Espíritu Santo, San José Island, Las Ánimas, San Francisquito and back south again.

We had searched the blue for hammerheads.

Played with sea lions.

Watched hundreds of barracudas move together in perfect synchronization.

Explored reefs and rocky canyons.

Seen the effects of unusually warm water.

Sat on the bottom at night while dozens of mobulas flew through beams of light.

And now we had explored a shipwreck that had become home to an entirely new underwater community.

Only Swanee Reef remained.

One more tank.

One more briefing.

One more giant stride.

One more descent into the Sea of Cortez.

And then it would be time to begin the journey home.

Day 6 – Dive #1 Log

 Dive Site: Fang Ming Wreck
 Artificial reef / shipwreck
 Descent and ascent using the mooring line
 Dive Guide: Mariana
Large schools of fish throughout the wreck
 Abundant black coral
 Large groupers around the structure
Sea turtle on the deck
 A sea lion exploring inside the wreck
 Air pockets created by accumulated diver bubbles
 Easy, controlled exploration through large openings
 Dive planned progressively from deeper to shallower areas

It was a beautiful way to begin our final day.

But we weren't finished yet.

Next: Swanee Reef — The Last Dive of Our Valentina Expedition.