San Jose Channel, Los Islotes and Bahia Bonanza/Isla Espiritu Santo
“Among the Great Whales”.......Whale sightings were fantastic all day yesterday.... so why not spend more time searching and looking at some more of these big mammals. Specially when we were located in a perfect place to find them.....the northern end of San Jose Channel. The waters are quite deep and important upwelling occur in this area of the Gulf, so whales tend to gather and feed around here. Before breakfast we had already spotted a blue whale, one of the 260 blue whales that have been identified during the winter and spring months inside the Sea of Cortez. This particular animal had no dorsal fin at all, no... not even the tiny dorsal that blues have... it was gone. Later on, a group of common dolphins decided to come over and check us out, some of them even went under the bow, to catch a free ride, behavior that its known as bowriding. At one point we had dolphins all around us, and even cute little babies were seen, swimming right next to their Mom’s. After that wonderful display we were all invited to the lounge for an interesting lecture about the geology of the Baja California Peninsula.
On our way to Los Islotes, which translates to “Islets”, we were surprised by a Bryde’s whale, a medium size baleen whale which is not frequently seen, this one silently came right up close to the ship and we had good looks at it. Conditions were nice, calm seas and a sunny bright day, perfect to go for a dip and get close to the sea lions that inhabit Los Islotes. A big group of excited snorkelers were in the water, having a great time looking and playing with the curious and agile pups. Though there was a big bull patrolling the area and barking at us, maybe just saying “back off” .....
As a great finale of the day, we had a barbecue dinner on a long white sandy beach, called Bahia Bonanza. We enjoyed a delicious meal and the warmth of a bonfire, guitar music and the traditional “smores” that made us all very happy..........
“Among the Great Whales”.......Whale sightings were fantastic all day yesterday.... so why not spend more time searching and looking at some more of these big mammals. Specially when we were located in a perfect place to find them.....the northern end of San Jose Channel. The waters are quite deep and important upwelling occur in this area of the Gulf, so whales tend to gather and feed around here. Before breakfast we had already spotted a blue whale, one of the 260 blue whales that have been identified during the winter and spring months inside the Sea of Cortez. This particular animal had no dorsal fin at all, no... not even the tiny dorsal that blues have... it was gone. Later on, a group of common dolphins decided to come over and check us out, some of them even went under the bow, to catch a free ride, behavior that its known as bowriding. At one point we had dolphins all around us, and even cute little babies were seen, swimming right next to their Mom’s. After that wonderful display we were all invited to the lounge for an interesting lecture about the geology of the Baja California Peninsula.
On our way to Los Islotes, which translates to “Islets”, we were surprised by a Bryde’s whale, a medium size baleen whale which is not frequently seen, this one silently came right up close to the ship and we had good looks at it. Conditions were nice, calm seas and a sunny bright day, perfect to go for a dip and get close to the sea lions that inhabit Los Islotes. A big group of excited snorkelers were in the water, having a great time looking and playing with the curious and agile pups. Though there was a big bull patrolling the area and barking at us, maybe just saying “back off” .....
As a great finale of the day, we had a barbecue dinner on a long white sandy beach, called Bahia Bonanza. We enjoyed a delicious meal and the warmth of a bonfire, guitar music and the traditional “smores” that made us all very happy..........
