Gorda Banks & Cabo San Lucas
You have to look to the sea and sky if you want to find the old Cabo San Lucas. That’s exactly what we did. The people and patterns have changed, and the pace as well, with spring break in high gear. But the birds and fish remain the same, as they go about their lives in clever, colorful ways.
First, the day began for us northeast of Cabo, off Gorda Banks, a pair of sea mounts where we spotted early morning blows of humpback whales, their spouts catching the warm dawn light. Mobula rays flipped through the air as if to compete with the whales, and several bottlenose dolphins dropped by.
Mid-day found us pulling into Cabo and tying up to a busy dock, surrounded by yachts aplenty, some with pelicans standing watch on their bows. While a few of us explored town along the busy waterfront, others elected to go birding with Brian, Steve and Iliana in San Jose del Cabo. The estuary offered such treats as a belted kingfisher, a gila woodpecker, two black-necked stilts, an American kestrel, and assorted herons and egrets. Nearby, at Chilenos Beach, the snorkelers marveled at king angelfish, scissortail damselfish, sergeant majors, rainbow wrasses, and yellowtail surgeonfish.
Sunset found us casting off and maneuvering past land’s end as frigatebirds spiraled high overhead. We shared gin and tonics on the bow and watched the day disappear in a final burst of color, as the elusive “green flash” proved not so elusive. We cheered our good fortune and the end of another wondrous day.
You have to look to the sea and sky if you want to find the old Cabo San Lucas. That’s exactly what we did. The people and patterns have changed, and the pace as well, with spring break in high gear. But the birds and fish remain the same, as they go about their lives in clever, colorful ways.
First, the day began for us northeast of Cabo, off Gorda Banks, a pair of sea mounts where we spotted early morning blows of humpback whales, their spouts catching the warm dawn light. Mobula rays flipped through the air as if to compete with the whales, and several bottlenose dolphins dropped by.
Mid-day found us pulling into Cabo and tying up to a busy dock, surrounded by yachts aplenty, some with pelicans standing watch on their bows. While a few of us explored town along the busy waterfront, others elected to go birding with Brian, Steve and Iliana in San Jose del Cabo. The estuary offered such treats as a belted kingfisher, a gila woodpecker, two black-necked stilts, an American kestrel, and assorted herons and egrets. Nearby, at Chilenos Beach, the snorkelers marveled at king angelfish, scissortail damselfish, sergeant majors, rainbow wrasses, and yellowtail surgeonfish.
Sunset found us casting off and maneuvering past land’s end as frigatebirds spiraled high overhead. We shared gin and tonics on the bow and watched the day disappear in a final burst of color, as the elusive “green flash” proved not so elusive. We cheered our good fortune and the end of another wondrous day.
