Cruising North, Afternoon At San Juanico on Baja Peninsula
The National Geographic Sea Bird continued throughout the night heading north pushing against the El Norte wind. Passing occasional areas of protection the swells would decrease slightly. At sunrise we were just east of Isla Danzante still heading north, with the Sierra de la Giganta, a beautiful, rugged mountain range that runs for hundreds of miles along the eastern side of the Baja peninsula, glowing ever so slightly pink, in the early morning sunlight. During breakfast our expedition leader made announcements about the day’s activities and let everyone know that our ride would continue to roll with swells created by the north wind until we reached our morning anchorage. When asked if guests could do many activities this afternoon, the answer was “yes” to hiking, and snorkeling! Our afternoon would open this unusual environment called "a desert by the sea" for each of us to experience. Just before 11:00am the National Geographic Sea Bird anchored just off the Baja peninsula at a place called San Juanico. Preparations were made for all activities to begin just after lunch.
Our first activity was snorkeling. More than half our group went ashore, ready for our first underwater adventure. With several natural history staff members in the water, we found our way towards a huge rock outcropping where several large schools of fish were also taking shelter from rough seas. Larger and more colorful fish like king angels, and giant damsels were hiding under rock ledges waiting and watching as we swam past. A large stone scorpion fish sat camouflaged on a rock, its outer covering matching the colors and textures of its perch. Sun stars and sea urchins of many kinds were everywhere and the water itself was green and soupy with zooplankton. Understanding that the Gulf of California was an extremely productive sea was now very easy to grasp, with the variety of different fish and organisms seen in our first look under the water’s surface.
From the water we moved to our first exploration of land. This first walk was on the Baja peninsula and it was pointed out by all the naturalists that this land would allow us to find some unusual plants and animals that can only be seen on the peninsula, whereas the islands of the Gulf of California would provide another unique and different faunal ecosystem. Once on shore we divided into several different groups and headed out into the desert landscape.
The Sonoran desert encompasses a territory of more than 100,000 square miles and is part of two countries and five different states within those countries. Our journey for the next week would be within the southern part of the Sororan desert. As late afternoon light began to decorate rock formations and plants alike we explored this very unusual and unique ecosystem. Giant columnar cacti and drought deciduous shrubs and trees are the dominating botanical features. We walked along a saltpan away from the beach stopping occasionally to learn about the many mechanisms plants use to survive this fierce environment. The air was filled with the scent of creosote bush, while turkey vultures circled on warm air currents high overhead. Slowly all groups found a similar turn-around point and began returning to the beach and waiting Zodiacs. The El Norte had decreased dramatically, and as the sun moved towards the edge of the western horizon the Gulf of California had calmed to small waves, gold and blue as the last rays of sunlight hit the surface. It was only our first day of exploration: under water, into a small arroyo, across a salt flat edging around thorny desert vegetation…. and there was so much more! As night approached, the wind died completely promising a restful night in preparation for another day heading north along the eastern side of the Baja peninsula exploring the mainland, islands, and waters of Gulf of California.
The National Geographic Sea Bird continued throughout the night heading north pushing against the El Norte wind. Passing occasional areas of protection the swells would decrease slightly. At sunrise we were just east of Isla Danzante still heading north, with the Sierra de la Giganta, a beautiful, rugged mountain range that runs for hundreds of miles along the eastern side of the Baja peninsula, glowing ever so slightly pink, in the early morning sunlight. During breakfast our expedition leader made announcements about the day’s activities and let everyone know that our ride would continue to roll with swells created by the north wind until we reached our morning anchorage. When asked if guests could do many activities this afternoon, the answer was “yes” to hiking, and snorkeling! Our afternoon would open this unusual environment called "a desert by the sea" for each of us to experience. Just before 11:00am the National Geographic Sea Bird anchored just off the Baja peninsula at a place called San Juanico. Preparations were made for all activities to begin just after lunch.
Our first activity was snorkeling. More than half our group went ashore, ready for our first underwater adventure. With several natural history staff members in the water, we found our way towards a huge rock outcropping where several large schools of fish were also taking shelter from rough seas. Larger and more colorful fish like king angels, and giant damsels were hiding under rock ledges waiting and watching as we swam past. A large stone scorpion fish sat camouflaged on a rock, its outer covering matching the colors and textures of its perch. Sun stars and sea urchins of many kinds were everywhere and the water itself was green and soupy with zooplankton. Understanding that the Gulf of California was an extremely productive sea was now very easy to grasp, with the variety of different fish and organisms seen in our first look under the water’s surface.
From the water we moved to our first exploration of land. This first walk was on the Baja peninsula and it was pointed out by all the naturalists that this land would allow us to find some unusual plants and animals that can only be seen on the peninsula, whereas the islands of the Gulf of California would provide another unique and different faunal ecosystem. Once on shore we divided into several different groups and headed out into the desert landscape.
The Sonoran desert encompasses a territory of more than 100,000 square miles and is part of two countries and five different states within those countries. Our journey for the next week would be within the southern part of the Sororan desert. As late afternoon light began to decorate rock formations and plants alike we explored this very unusual and unique ecosystem. Giant columnar cacti and drought deciduous shrubs and trees are the dominating botanical features. We walked along a saltpan away from the beach stopping occasionally to learn about the many mechanisms plants use to survive this fierce environment. The air was filled with the scent of creosote bush, while turkey vultures circled on warm air currents high overhead. Slowly all groups found a similar turn-around point and began returning to the beach and waiting Zodiacs. The El Norte had decreased dramatically, and as the sun moved towards the edge of the western horizon the Gulf of California had calmed to small waves, gold and blue as the last rays of sunlight hit the surface. It was only our first day of exploration: under water, into a small arroyo, across a salt flat edging around thorny desert vegetation…. and there was so much more! As night approached, the wind died completely promising a restful night in preparation for another day heading north along the eastern side of the Baja peninsula exploring the mainland, islands, and waters of Gulf of California.
