As the moon set over Isla Magdalena (pictured above), gray whales rose off the bow of the Seabird along with the sun. Backs, flukes and blows dotted the waters of Magdalena Bay. Even in the early morning light, we were able to discern the mottled appearance of these great animals. It is so hard to imagine that these whales were once close to extinction and now so prolific in eastern Pacific waters.
After breakfast our fleet of Zodiacs ushered us ashore to Isla Magdalena. We hiked across the dunes through fog and sand with the warmth of the sun on our backs. The greenness of the vegatation was startling since we were surrounded by desert. Fog and sporadic rain fuels the different desert plants here on the island. Sand verbena and sea purslane anchored many of the dunes, creating mini domes of sand throughout the landscape. Once we ascended the final set of dunes we were cristened by the salt spray of the Pacific Ocean. Once on the beach, we quickly learned why the naturalists called this place “sand dollar beach.” Thousands of these large echinoderms were scattered along the tide line.
In the early afternoon we started our transit north into the Hull Canal. Mangroves and mudflats lined these waters and provided a perfect backdrop for many shore birds. Long-billed curlews, white ibis, whimbrels and godwits probed the flats looked for creatures in the sand. A series of mangrove stands provided perfect real estate for nesting heron and cormorants. Most surprising was an immature bald eagle standing alone on a sand-spit. But our greatest treat was the mother and calf gray whale in the nursery waters off Lopez Mateos acting as a sentry to the waters of Boca de Soledad.
