The morning started with National Geographic Sea Bird anchored in Bahia Almejas. As the sun broke through the clouds, everyone excitedly prepared to set out whale watching. The pangas took us to the mouth of the bay and we found ourselves surrounded by gray whales! It was amazing to look around and see the giants in every direction. After the up-close encounters with the whales, the ship moved to Isla Magdalena. Everyone went ashore for a short hike through the sand dunes to the Pacific. We explored all along the way and naturalists pointed out beautiful flowers, intriguing animal tracks, and revealed the hidden mystery of sand dollars. The sand was as fine as flour and felt amazing under bare feet as we all walked back through the last light of the day.
1/27/2022
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National Geographic Sea Bird
Hull Canal and Sand Dollar Beach
We steamed south in the Hull Canal today, returning to Magdalena Bay. Along the way, we spotted the following: a gray whale cow and calf, dolphins riding our bow wake, coyotes on shore and various birds in the mangroves and mudflats. In the afternoon, we made our final landing on one of the narrowest parts of the peninsula, a small isthmus. With a short walk across the sand dunes, we arrived at the Pacific Ocean. We spent time on Sand Dollar Beach, which takes its name from the immense amount of sand dollars along the shore.
