San Ignacio Lagoon, Baja California Sur
“The large bays and lagoons, where these animals once congregated, brought forth and nurtured their young, are already nearly deserted. The mammoth bones of the California gray lie bleaching on the shores of those silvery waters, and are scattered among the broken coasts from Siberia to the Gulf of California; and ere long it may be questioned whether this mammal will not be numbered among the extinct species of the Pacific.”
Thus wrote whaling captain Charles Melville Scammon in 1874 recognizing the very real possibility of the loss of the California gray whale. Again during the twentieth century, this species was brought to the brink of extinction by modern era whalers. Now, after more than 150 years since first hunting these animals in the sheltered warm water lagoons of Baja California, these magnificent whales have fully recovered with the help of conservation efforts by Mexico, the United States and Canada. The current population of California gray whales is believed to be at or near pre-whaling day estimates.
This afternoon, those of us on board the National Geographic Sea Lion, came to San Ignacio Lagoon to hunt gray whales once again. In this enlightened era, we come armed with cameras and lenses, rather than deadly harpoons. In place of the “devilfish” the whalers’ stories were laced with, we encounter friendly mothers with young calves. Curious whales had us excitedly moving from port to starboard on our small Zodiacs, as cameras clicked and whirred capturing the magic of the moment. Unbridled joy and spontaneous laughter erupted as we reached toward these whales with child-like wonder.
Whether they have forgiven or forgotten, our interactions with these California gray whales ended, with both species the better for it. What a difference 150 years can make in our actions toward one another. Humans no longer come to kill California gray whales in these protected waters, and gray whales no longer find it necessary to defend themselves, often at the cost of human life.
As the sun set behind the watery horizon of the Pacific, each of us, in our own way is left to integrate today’s experience within our own living.
“The large bays and lagoons, where these animals once congregated, brought forth and nurtured their young, are already nearly deserted. The mammoth bones of the California gray lie bleaching on the shores of those silvery waters, and are scattered among the broken coasts from Siberia to the Gulf of California; and ere long it may be questioned whether this mammal will not be numbered among the extinct species of the Pacific.”
Thus wrote whaling captain Charles Melville Scammon in 1874 recognizing the very real possibility of the loss of the California gray whale. Again during the twentieth century, this species was brought to the brink of extinction by modern era whalers. Now, after more than 150 years since first hunting these animals in the sheltered warm water lagoons of Baja California, these magnificent whales have fully recovered with the help of conservation efforts by Mexico, the United States and Canada. The current population of California gray whales is believed to be at or near pre-whaling day estimates.
This afternoon, those of us on board the National Geographic Sea Lion, came to San Ignacio Lagoon to hunt gray whales once again. In this enlightened era, we come armed with cameras and lenses, rather than deadly harpoons. In place of the “devilfish” the whalers’ stories were laced with, we encounter friendly mothers with young calves. Curious whales had us excitedly moving from port to starboard on our small Zodiacs, as cameras clicked and whirred capturing the magic of the moment. Unbridled joy and spontaneous laughter erupted as we reached toward these whales with child-like wonder.
Whether they have forgiven or forgotten, our interactions with these California gray whales ended, with both species the better for it. What a difference 150 years can make in our actions toward one another. Humans no longer come to kill California gray whales in these protected waters, and gray whales no longer find it necessary to defend themselves, often at the cost of human life.
As the sun set behind the watery horizon of the Pacific, each of us, in our own way is left to integrate today’s experience within our own living.
