Sand Dollar Beach and Hull Canal, Bahia Magdalena
It’s only our first day out of the port of San Carlos, located in the southern part of Bahia Magdalena, and the environmental diversity and natural abundance of Baja have already won many hearts! Bahia Magdalena (or Mag Bay, for short) between Boca de Soledad in the north and the vessel entrance at La Entrada in the south is approximately 50 miles in length. The protected waters of the bay are lined with beaches anchored by dense stands of mangrove. The mangroves are always in danger of being overtaken by the surprisingly large and numerous sand dunes that are characteristic of the barrier islands that form Mag Bay.
We began our day by going ashore at Sand Dollar Beach on Isla Magdalena. Here is a place where the desert truly meets the sea! While some people chose to explore on their own, many of us formed groups and joined the natural history staff and guest speakers in hikes across the dunes and over to the Pacific ocean. It was a great opportunity to stretch our legs and also to get better acquainted with this amazing landscape and begin to uncover some of its secrets and stories. On our hikes we encountered beautiful desert plants including sea purslane with its delicate purple blooms, boxthorn bushes draped in lichen and the famous “loco weed.” The skeletons of a dolphin, a sea turtle and pelicans were examined, explained and marveled over. We followed the tracks of gray fox and coyotes and some people even saw the coyotes among the dunes—one with a rabbit in its mouth! The many sand dollars that wash up on the expansive and sublime Pacific side of the island, and which lend the beach its name, were enjoyed and discussed at length. The huge piles of shells that dot the dunes were also a source of considerable debate with some believing that they are middens and others preferring an explanation free of human intervention.
We left the beach enthralled, only to be treated to a bottlenose dolphin escort into Hull Canal. Soon after passing through the narrowest part of the channel that leads to the prime Gray whale calving area of Mag Bay, we encountered the first Grays. We spotted at least 60 individuals before dropping our anchor in Boca de Soledad, the Mouth of Solitude. We can hardly wait to get out in our Zodiacs tomorrow!
It’s only our first day out of the port of San Carlos, located in the southern part of Bahia Magdalena, and the environmental diversity and natural abundance of Baja have already won many hearts! Bahia Magdalena (or Mag Bay, for short) between Boca de Soledad in the north and the vessel entrance at La Entrada in the south is approximately 50 miles in length. The protected waters of the bay are lined with beaches anchored by dense stands of mangrove. The mangroves are always in danger of being overtaken by the surprisingly large and numerous sand dunes that are characteristic of the barrier islands that form Mag Bay.
We began our day by going ashore at Sand Dollar Beach on Isla Magdalena. Here is a place where the desert truly meets the sea! While some people chose to explore on their own, many of us formed groups and joined the natural history staff and guest speakers in hikes across the dunes and over to the Pacific ocean. It was a great opportunity to stretch our legs and also to get better acquainted with this amazing landscape and begin to uncover some of its secrets and stories. On our hikes we encountered beautiful desert plants including sea purslane with its delicate purple blooms, boxthorn bushes draped in lichen and the famous “loco weed.” The skeletons of a dolphin, a sea turtle and pelicans were examined, explained and marveled over. We followed the tracks of gray fox and coyotes and some people even saw the coyotes among the dunes—one with a rabbit in its mouth! The many sand dollars that wash up on the expansive and sublime Pacific side of the island, and which lend the beach its name, were enjoyed and discussed at length. The huge piles of shells that dot the dunes were also a source of considerable debate with some believing that they are middens and others preferring an explanation free of human intervention.
We left the beach enthralled, only to be treated to a bottlenose dolphin escort into Hull Canal. Soon after passing through the narrowest part of the channel that leads to the prime Gray whale calving area of Mag Bay, we encountered the first Grays. We spotted at least 60 individuals before dropping our anchor in Boca de Soledad, the Mouth of Solitude. We can hardly wait to get out in our Zodiacs tomorrow!
