San Ignacio lagoon
A marvelous day started quite early today, as the National Geographic Sea Bird entered the harbor at Santa Rosalia; the now quiet town once was the epicenter of a frenzied French copper mining enterprise. “El Boleo” mine operated from 1885 until the 1950’s and the ruins of the smelting structures, chimneys and huge copper ore piles are still visible all around: a clear reminder of former glories.
Now, Santa Rosalia relies more on commercial fishing as its main economic activity; Humboldt’s squid is particularly abundant here and many people now make a living by catching the 3 to 5 feet-long mollusks. Anyway, we all boarded several cars and headed north along famous Highway No. 1, the trans-peninsular paved road that goes from the border to Cabo San Lucas. Our final destination was San Ignacio lagoon, but first we made a nice stop at the lovely town of San Ignacio. Founded by the Jesuit missionaries in the early 1700’s and later taken care of by the Franciscans, San Ignacio is a true oasis in the desert.
A while later we arrived to the shores of the almost mythical San Ignacio lagoon; seriously, if there is a place where humans and gray whales could fulfill their respective curiosity towards each other, it is here. We boarded some local “pangas” and soon were enjoying the beauty of the gray whale. Mother whales with their young babies, single adults and groups of several together were seen everywhere. Many of us had the privilege to watch their antics up-close and personal as the breached, spy-hopped or just cruised around.
San Ignacio lagoon is a world-class destination for nature lovers, and I am sure that many of us will dream of whales tonight.
A marvelous day started quite early today, as the National Geographic Sea Bird entered the harbor at Santa Rosalia; the now quiet town once was the epicenter of a frenzied French copper mining enterprise. “El Boleo” mine operated from 1885 until the 1950’s and the ruins of the smelting structures, chimneys and huge copper ore piles are still visible all around: a clear reminder of former glories.
Now, Santa Rosalia relies more on commercial fishing as its main economic activity; Humboldt’s squid is particularly abundant here and many people now make a living by catching the 3 to 5 feet-long mollusks. Anyway, we all boarded several cars and headed north along famous Highway No. 1, the trans-peninsular paved road that goes from the border to Cabo San Lucas. Our final destination was San Ignacio lagoon, but first we made a nice stop at the lovely town of San Ignacio. Founded by the Jesuit missionaries in the early 1700’s and later taken care of by the Franciscans, San Ignacio is a true oasis in the desert.
A while later we arrived to the shores of the almost mythical San Ignacio lagoon; seriously, if there is a place where humans and gray whales could fulfill their respective curiosity towards each other, it is here. We boarded some local “pangas” and soon were enjoying the beauty of the gray whale. Mother whales with their young babies, single adults and groups of several together were seen everywhere. Many of us had the privilege to watch their antics up-close and personal as the breached, spy-hopped or just cruised around.
San Ignacio lagoon is a world-class destination for nature lovers, and I am sure that many of us will dream of whales tonight.
