Isla San Marcos and Isla Tortuga, Baja California
We began our day today as we ended it, in the company of whales! Our day started at sunrise close to the northern shores of Isla San Marcos, and as the sun rose we spotted the tell-tale spouts of whales surfacing. We moved the ship a little closer to surfacing whales and soon we were surrounded, in every direction we could see Bryde’s whales and fin whales, both species were busy feeding and paid our little ship no attention at all. We stayed with the whales through breakfast, and after breakfast began going ashore for long, medium, short and stationary hikes.
Whatever hike you took, you were not disappointed, as each island, each mountain-side, even each arroyo has its own personality, its own unique ambiance and after our walks we came back to the ship where we could take a swim off the stern to cool off, or go to the beach for kayaks and further exploration.
We were all back aboard by lunch, and after some delicious tacos and guanabana ice cream, we set sail for Isla Tortuga. A well deserved siesta was enjoyed by many of us, and after an hour or two sailing, more whales were spotted, and we knew it was a new species, as even from a great distance the spouts looked very different from those we had been seeing earlier.
Sure enough, we had found a new cetacean species, sperm whale, and as we watched the first individual spotted, more whales were seen in the distance, and soon we were surrounded, in any direction you looked whales could be seen. We spent the next few hours enthralled by these giant toothed whales, watching as they took deep dives in search of squid, and then upon resurfacing they just floated at the surface, replenishing their oxygen supply. Indeed some of them surfaced very close to the ship, enabling us to get very good looks at them, and then our valiant Undersea Specialist Carlos Navarro set out in a Zodiac to try and get underwater footage of the whales! We watched as he slipped into the water over and over again, each time the whales slipping away before he got close. But Carlos was undeterred, and after many attempts – success, he had captured the whales underwater. We all gathered in the lounge later that evening to watch the footage. A great end to a super day! Tomorrow, more adventures await as we head further north.
We began our day today as we ended it, in the company of whales! Our day started at sunrise close to the northern shores of Isla San Marcos, and as the sun rose we spotted the tell-tale spouts of whales surfacing. We moved the ship a little closer to surfacing whales and soon we were surrounded, in every direction we could see Bryde’s whales and fin whales, both species were busy feeding and paid our little ship no attention at all. We stayed with the whales through breakfast, and after breakfast began going ashore for long, medium, short and stationary hikes.
Whatever hike you took, you were not disappointed, as each island, each mountain-side, even each arroyo has its own personality, its own unique ambiance and after our walks we came back to the ship where we could take a swim off the stern to cool off, or go to the beach for kayaks and further exploration.
We were all back aboard by lunch, and after some delicious tacos and guanabana ice cream, we set sail for Isla Tortuga. A well deserved siesta was enjoyed by many of us, and after an hour or two sailing, more whales were spotted, and we knew it was a new species, as even from a great distance the spouts looked very different from those we had been seeing earlier.
Sure enough, we had found a new cetacean species, sperm whale, and as we watched the first individual spotted, more whales were seen in the distance, and soon we were surrounded, in any direction you looked whales could be seen. We spent the next few hours enthralled by these giant toothed whales, watching as they took deep dives in search of squid, and then upon resurfacing they just floated at the surface, replenishing their oxygen supply. Indeed some of them surfaced very close to the ship, enabling us to get very good looks at them, and then our valiant Undersea Specialist Carlos Navarro set out in a Zodiac to try and get underwater footage of the whales! We watched as he slipped into the water over and over again, each time the whales slipping away before he got close. But Carlos was undeterred, and after many attempts – success, he had captured the whales underwater. We all gathered in the lounge later that evening to watch the footage. A great end to a super day! Tomorrow, more adventures await as we head further north.
