San José Channel & Isla San José
The first day of our Expedition through the Gulf of California began as we sailed through the productive waters of the San José Channel. Early in the morning we had our fist sighting of a marine mammal. A Bryde’s whale surfaced several times, not far from our bow, showing us its odd-shaped dorsal fin. At first it was a little puzzling to identify this baleen whale, since this individual animal had a bent and scarred dorsal fin but soon its behavior revealed its identity. A couple more blows in the distance led us to a pair of humpback whales, which took several dives giving us very good looks at the designs under their flukes.
After our mandatory drills and briefings, common dolphins escorted the Sea Bird, occasionally showing acrobatic displays of joy on the wake. Today we also had the privilege of witnessing the largest animal on earth, a blue whale that splashed the water with every breath, shortly after showing a huge aquamarine silhouette under the water’s surface.
After all this explosion of marine life, we still had more things to come. We had the opportunity to submerge ourselves into the underwater world. Surrounded by a majestic sandstone amphitheater, we snorkeled at Punta Colorada, a beautiful landing on Isla San José. Sea fans, purple gorgonians, king angel fish and many other colorful creatures were seen. The sensation of freedom in a wild place is present with every breath we take through our snorkels.
To end the day, different duration hikes were offered through the Sonoran Desert environment. The arroyos, or dry riverbeds provide us with the perfect routes to explore the desert, and are adorned by life, a natural botanical garden. It might be hard to believe, but yes, this is only the first day of our expedition!
The first day of our Expedition through the Gulf of California began as we sailed through the productive waters of the San José Channel. Early in the morning we had our fist sighting of a marine mammal. A Bryde’s whale surfaced several times, not far from our bow, showing us its odd-shaped dorsal fin. At first it was a little puzzling to identify this baleen whale, since this individual animal had a bent and scarred dorsal fin but soon its behavior revealed its identity. A couple more blows in the distance led us to a pair of humpback whales, which took several dives giving us very good looks at the designs under their flukes.
After our mandatory drills and briefings, common dolphins escorted the Sea Bird, occasionally showing acrobatic displays of joy on the wake. Today we also had the privilege of witnessing the largest animal on earth, a blue whale that splashed the water with every breath, shortly after showing a huge aquamarine silhouette under the water’s surface.
After all this explosion of marine life, we still had more things to come. We had the opportunity to submerge ourselves into the underwater world. Surrounded by a majestic sandstone amphitheater, we snorkeled at Punta Colorada, a beautiful landing on Isla San José. Sea fans, purple gorgonians, king angel fish and many other colorful creatures were seen. The sensation of freedom in a wild place is present with every breath we take through our snorkels.
To end the day, different duration hikes were offered through the Sonoran Desert environment. The arroyos, or dry riverbeds provide us with the perfect routes to explore the desert, and are adorned by life, a natural botanical garden. It might be hard to believe, but yes, this is only the first day of our expedition!
