Bahia Magdalena
Today was our second day of whale watching in the Boca de Soledad, one of the northern entrances to Bahia Magdalena. We left shortly after first light and although the fog threatened to blow in, it held off and we were treated to very close sightings of the many whales that are swimming up and down the Bay against the tidal currents.
There were a few mother-calf pairs, but most of the whales we followed today were adult males and females in courting groups with several males following the females hoping one will decide to mate with them. Some of these individuals were feeling very exuberant and were either spy-hopping or sometimes breaching nearly completely out of the water. Some of the courting groups were attended by groups of bottle-nosed dolphins who sometimes rode the bow waves created by the whales—just as they do with ships. The rest of the time the dolphins just seemed voyeuristic and to be interested in all the courting activity.
After lunch we walked across the dunes to a beautiful beach called Bahia Santa Maria on the Pacific side of Isla Magdalena. Isla Magdalena is one of the two barrier islands that enclose Bahia Magdalena and Bahia Santa Maria is about six miles of crescent sand connecting two mountainous parts of the island. The beach is covered with large sand dollars and the remains of many marine animals and plants washed up by the longshore current.
It was a wonderful end to our memorable days in Baja California and an emphatic reminder of the beauty of this still wild place.
Today was our second day of whale watching in the Boca de Soledad, one of the northern entrances to Bahia Magdalena. We left shortly after first light and although the fog threatened to blow in, it held off and we were treated to very close sightings of the many whales that are swimming up and down the Bay against the tidal currents.
There were a few mother-calf pairs, but most of the whales we followed today were adult males and females in courting groups with several males following the females hoping one will decide to mate with them. Some of these individuals were feeling very exuberant and were either spy-hopping or sometimes breaching nearly completely out of the water. Some of the courting groups were attended by groups of bottle-nosed dolphins who sometimes rode the bow waves created by the whales—just as they do with ships. The rest of the time the dolphins just seemed voyeuristic and to be interested in all the courting activity.
After lunch we walked across the dunes to a beautiful beach called Bahia Santa Maria on the Pacific side of Isla Magdalena. Isla Magdalena is one of the two barrier islands that enclose Bahia Magdalena and Bahia Santa Maria is about six miles of crescent sand connecting two mountainous parts of the island. The beach is covered with large sand dollars and the remains of many marine animals and plants washed up by the longshore current.
It was a wonderful end to our memorable days in Baja California and an emphatic reminder of the beauty of this still wild place.
