Punta Cabeza Mechudo And Isla San Francisco
Wow! What a terrific first day in the Gulf of California. Bette Lu's announcement at 6:45 am awakened us to hundreds of common dolphins surrounding the ship. Many babies traveling along side their mothers, porpoising out of the water in perfect synchronicity. The group moved rapidly, herding schools of fish and concentrating them into what is known as bait balls an easier way for them to hunt and eat. The dolphins led us to an unusually large group of Bryde's or Tropical whales (a 50-ft. long baleen whale) that seemed to be joining the feeding frenzy that was building up among dolphins and many sea birds. From the distance we could only see a few blows but when we got closer we were surprised with the presence of at least 10 of these whales which put on a wonderful show for us. We watched them blowing, feeding and racing around the ship for close to three hours, really an amazing sight.
As we moved away from them, more spouts in the horizon were observed, but this time they were fin whales, another species of the baleen whale, who happen to be the second largest cetacean in the world, growing up to 70 feet in length. And if that wasn't enough excitement for one morning, we also watched a young humpback whale breaching several times.
We were drawn to Isla San Francisco this afternoon as it offered a variety of possibilities such as desert walks, snorkeling and tide pooling. Most of us had the chance to do it all; during the hikes Pete and Gretchen introduced us to the Sonoran Desert flora and its adaptations, Iliana taught the beginning snorkelers from the beach and Larry and Bette Lu assisted at the snorkel boat. As the last activity of the day, when the tide was low, Erika interpreted the fascinating lives of marine invertebrates found in the intertidal zone.
Wow! What a terrific first day in the Gulf of California. Bette Lu's announcement at 6:45 am awakened us to hundreds of common dolphins surrounding the ship. Many babies traveling along side their mothers, porpoising out of the water in perfect synchronicity. The group moved rapidly, herding schools of fish and concentrating them into what is known as bait balls an easier way for them to hunt and eat. The dolphins led us to an unusually large group of Bryde's or Tropical whales (a 50-ft. long baleen whale) that seemed to be joining the feeding frenzy that was building up among dolphins and many sea birds. From the distance we could only see a few blows but when we got closer we were surprised with the presence of at least 10 of these whales which put on a wonderful show for us. We watched them blowing, feeding and racing around the ship for close to three hours, really an amazing sight.
As we moved away from them, more spouts in the horizon were observed, but this time they were fin whales, another species of the baleen whale, who happen to be the second largest cetacean in the world, growing up to 70 feet in length. And if that wasn't enough excitement for one morning, we also watched a young humpback whale breaching several times.
We were drawn to Isla San Francisco this afternoon as it offered a variety of possibilities such as desert walks, snorkeling and tide pooling. Most of us had the chance to do it all; during the hikes Pete and Gretchen introduced us to the Sonoran Desert flora and its adaptations, Iliana taught the beginning snorkelers from the beach and Larry and Bette Lu assisted at the snorkel boat. As the last activity of the day, when the tide was low, Erika interpreted the fascinating lives of marine invertebrates found in the intertidal zone.
