Bahia de los Angeles
There is magic every day in Baja California. Today, for the early risers, the setting moon at sunrise jump-started our day.
During breakfast the National Geographic Sea Lion anchored in Puerto Don Juan, a protected bay along the peninsula. This was the perfect place to go ashore and explore, and also to paddle the calm waters in our kayaks. Hikes into the interior uncovered lush Sonoran Desert vegetation including giant elephant trees. Offshore pelicans were fishing in the bay and a couple of Pacific loons were swimming close to shore. One of the highlights were the yellow-footed gulls clamming in the bay and dropping the clams on the rocks where they would swoop down and eat them right in front of us.
During the afternoon we repositioned to the small fishing town of Bahia de los Angeles. Here we went ashore for the great Boojum adventure. A fleet of local vehicles greeted us on shore and transported us about twenty minutes out of town to one of the most unusual forests on the planet. Boojums, or Cirio trees, look like inverted carrots and are endemic to Baja. They get their name from Lewis Carroll’s children story “Hunting of the Snark.” They certainly seemed like strange and mythical creatures from a distant land today as the late-afternoon light danced across the desert landscape.
While the ship lingered at anchor for the evening, moonlight streaming through the clouds was a fitting end to yet another magical day.
There is magic every day in Baja California. Today, for the early risers, the setting moon at sunrise jump-started our day.
During breakfast the National Geographic Sea Lion anchored in Puerto Don Juan, a protected bay along the peninsula. This was the perfect place to go ashore and explore, and also to paddle the calm waters in our kayaks. Hikes into the interior uncovered lush Sonoran Desert vegetation including giant elephant trees. Offshore pelicans were fishing in the bay and a couple of Pacific loons were swimming close to shore. One of the highlights were the yellow-footed gulls clamming in the bay and dropping the clams on the rocks where they would swoop down and eat them right in front of us.
During the afternoon we repositioned to the small fishing town of Bahia de los Angeles. Here we went ashore for the great Boojum adventure. A fleet of local vehicles greeted us on shore and transported us about twenty minutes out of town to one of the most unusual forests on the planet. Boojums, or Cirio trees, look like inverted carrots and are endemic to Baja. They get their name from Lewis Carroll’s children story “Hunting of the Snark.” They certainly seemed like strange and mythical creatures from a distant land today as the late-afternoon light danced across the desert landscape.
While the ship lingered at anchor for the evening, moonlight streaming through the clouds was a fitting end to yet another magical day.
