At Sea & Cabo San Lucas
The sun slowly showed up behind the mountainous profile of the Baja California Peninsula to the East, as we sailed south towards Cabo San Lucas. The Sea Bird rocked gently as she rode the low waves while traveling with the wind, giving us an exciting sensation of the open Pacific. Not long after breakfast, the seemingly empty ocean became alive as a group of long-beaked common dolphins added a touch of life to the waves. Several dolphins took advantage of the pressure wave created by the Sea Bird’s bow and rode it at leisure! Some brown and masked boobies followed us every once in awhile, possibly trying to get a closer inspection of our ship, whose white color might look suspiciously similar to a guano-covered rock on which to perch. Phalaropes, ocean sunfishes and striped marlins were occasionally spotted from deck. By mid-morning we encountered a large group of a different dolphin species, the short-beaked common dolphin, which delighted everyone on board. Their high jumps, fast bursts of speed and sheer beauty kept cameras busy and smiles flashing. Having had the chance to watch both species of common dolphins in the same morning gave us a better perspective to compare those very similar-looking cetaceans that, according to our Expedition Leader, should be renamed as “magnificent dolphins”. But those were not the only marvelous encounters we had, as we spotted three humpback whales before lunch! They swam very close to our ship and showed us their flukes each time that they went for a longer dive.
By mid-afternoon the Sea Bird approached Land’s End, but our best intentions to reach the dock in Cabo San Lucas were delayed by a another humpback whale trio made by a female with her young calf and another adult whale. And quite active they were! They repeatedly breached, lob tailed, and slapped the water with their long pectoral flippers, keeping all the photographers on board on their toes! A more spectacular display of power and grace would be hard to imagine. This experience provided everyone with the chance to treasure great photographs and memories. We continued our way south and officially entered the waters of the Gulf of California, or Sea of Cortez, after rounding the magnificent granite formations of Land’s End. We docked in Cabo San Lucas and got a chance to walk around town; however, although the sounds and sights of this busy tourist Mecca were hard to ignore, my mind drifted away and thought of flying whales…
The sun slowly showed up behind the mountainous profile of the Baja California Peninsula to the East, as we sailed south towards Cabo San Lucas. The Sea Bird rocked gently as she rode the low waves while traveling with the wind, giving us an exciting sensation of the open Pacific. Not long after breakfast, the seemingly empty ocean became alive as a group of long-beaked common dolphins added a touch of life to the waves. Several dolphins took advantage of the pressure wave created by the Sea Bird’s bow and rode it at leisure! Some brown and masked boobies followed us every once in awhile, possibly trying to get a closer inspection of our ship, whose white color might look suspiciously similar to a guano-covered rock on which to perch. Phalaropes, ocean sunfishes and striped marlins were occasionally spotted from deck. By mid-morning we encountered a large group of a different dolphin species, the short-beaked common dolphin, which delighted everyone on board. Their high jumps, fast bursts of speed and sheer beauty kept cameras busy and smiles flashing. Having had the chance to watch both species of common dolphins in the same morning gave us a better perspective to compare those very similar-looking cetaceans that, according to our Expedition Leader, should be renamed as “magnificent dolphins”. But those were not the only marvelous encounters we had, as we spotted three humpback whales before lunch! They swam very close to our ship and showed us their flukes each time that they went for a longer dive.
By mid-afternoon the Sea Bird approached Land’s End, but our best intentions to reach the dock in Cabo San Lucas were delayed by a another humpback whale trio made by a female with her young calf and another adult whale. And quite active they were! They repeatedly breached, lob tailed, and slapped the water with their long pectoral flippers, keeping all the photographers on board on their toes! A more spectacular display of power and grace would be hard to imagine. This experience provided everyone with the chance to treasure great photographs and memories. We continued our way south and officially entered the waters of the Gulf of California, or Sea of Cortez, after rounding the magnificent granite formations of Land’s End. We docked in Cabo San Lucas and got a chance to walk around town; however, although the sounds and sights of this busy tourist Mecca were hard to ignore, my mind drifted away and thought of flying whales…
