Los Ahorcados

Los Ahorcados — 'the hanged men' — refers to a pair of dramatic rock pinnacles rising from 30 metres to break the surface at the southern extent of Machalilla National Park waters. The pinnacles are draped in black coral, orange cup corals, and encrusting sponges, with dense aggregations of creole fish and surgeonfish moving through the surge zone. Humpback whales pass between the pinnacles on their southward migration from July to September, and their presence underwater is one of the most extraordinary experiences on the Ecuadorian coast. Dive boats time entries carefully around the whales, and sightings of mothers with calves are common in August. Reef sharks patrol the base during ebb tides.