Los Islotes & Isla San Francisco
On our last day of this voyage around the Baja peninsula, we chose to explore the area north of Espiritu Santo in as many ways as possible. Starting with Los Islotes after breakfast, and finishing with the sandy crescent shaped beach at San Francisco, we covered a lot of territory in our day.
Los Islotes are a small group of rocks that are home to some breeding seabirds and California sea lions. We first explored them by Zodiac, which allowed for close up views of the abundant wildlife. Pelicans were dive-bombing schooling fishes, while boobies whistled their breeding calls from high on the rocks. A Great Blue Heron sat on its nest, while Yellow-footed Gulls manically laughed at each other. Of course the main attraction was the population of sea lions that are here year round. Moms nursed their 6-month-old pups, while sub-adult males patrolled the rocks barking their dominance. The swimming packs of curious pups were delightful to watch, and these led to our next activity of snorkeling.
Los Islotes would be a great snorkel site, even if there were not sea lions. Massive schools of herring clouded the water, and were being fed on by many different species of predatory fish including groupers, snappers, and yellowtail. Chocolate chip starfish covered the rocks, and colorful angelfish and wrasses surrounded us. Schools of goatfish and snappers slowly wove amongst the rocks. Of course, the sea lions were once again the main attraction. Mock charges, while at first threatening, provided amazement in their swimming abilities. Sea lions are incredibly graceful swimmers, and their ballet amongst us was a joy to watch. They certainly enjoying spinning around with each other, and included us in their game as well. A treat for sure.
After lunch, our final outing was to the picturesque island of San Francisco. Here we separated to enjoy and reflect on our voyage. Tidepooling, kayaking, hiking, and beachcombing were all popular activities. These allowed not only for new exploration but also for looking back to our vast experiences here in our week on the National Geographic Sea Bird.
On our last day of this voyage around the Baja peninsula, we chose to explore the area north of Espiritu Santo in as many ways as possible. Starting with Los Islotes after breakfast, and finishing with the sandy crescent shaped beach at San Francisco, we covered a lot of territory in our day.
Los Islotes are a small group of rocks that are home to some breeding seabirds and California sea lions. We first explored them by Zodiac, which allowed for close up views of the abundant wildlife. Pelicans were dive-bombing schooling fishes, while boobies whistled their breeding calls from high on the rocks. A Great Blue Heron sat on its nest, while Yellow-footed Gulls manically laughed at each other. Of course the main attraction was the population of sea lions that are here year round. Moms nursed their 6-month-old pups, while sub-adult males patrolled the rocks barking their dominance. The swimming packs of curious pups were delightful to watch, and these led to our next activity of snorkeling.
Los Islotes would be a great snorkel site, even if there were not sea lions. Massive schools of herring clouded the water, and were being fed on by many different species of predatory fish including groupers, snappers, and yellowtail. Chocolate chip starfish covered the rocks, and colorful angelfish and wrasses surrounded us. Schools of goatfish and snappers slowly wove amongst the rocks. Of course, the sea lions were once again the main attraction. Mock charges, while at first threatening, provided amazement in their swimming abilities. Sea lions are incredibly graceful swimmers, and their ballet amongst us was a joy to watch. They certainly enjoying spinning around with each other, and included us in their game as well. A treat for sure.
After lunch, our final outing was to the picturesque island of San Francisco. Here we separated to enjoy and reflect on our voyage. Tidepooling, kayaking, hiking, and beachcombing were all popular activities. These allowed not only for new exploration but also for looking back to our vast experiences here in our week on the National Geographic Sea Bird.
