Isla San Marcos
The first day of our expedition took pace on Isla San Marcos. After sailing northbound all night, we dropped the anchor on the east side of this island to take our first close look at the Sonoran Desert environment. As soon as we landed on the island, we could see several ospreys hovering in the sky, perched on the magnificent cardon cacti and some of them landing on their nests. Great blue herons were also nesting in the vicinity, at least two nests, and several of these beautiful birds were seen.
Walking through the arroyos, or dry riverbeds, we discovered incredible adaptations of the plants to survive in the extreme desert conditions. Some of the resident bird species were present as well as some of the interesting lizards that inhabit this island. The tide was low, and exploring the shoreline at low tide can be really interesting. Near our landing there were some exposed rocks, where marine organisms that have a high tolerance for changing environments live. By exploring this tidal pools we discovered barnacles, urchins, sea stars of different kinds, anemones and many other striking creatures.
Since the winds from the east gained speed, we repositioned the ship to the opposite side of the island for the afternoon activities. We found a nice protected beach on the west side, which is ideal for water activities. Here we snorkeled from the beach; as we submerged ourselves into the productive waters of the Gulf of California we could see many of the species of fish: several stingrays, king angels, wrasses and many different invertebrates, like sea stars and urchins.
Kayaking was spectacular, as we explored the shoreline of caves and cliffs of the island we could also take a closer look at the crabs on the rocks, the yellow-footed gulls and osprey nests on the rocks. This was a wonderful first day of our expedition through the Vermillion Sea.
The first day of our expedition took pace on Isla San Marcos. After sailing northbound all night, we dropped the anchor on the east side of this island to take our first close look at the Sonoran Desert environment. As soon as we landed on the island, we could see several ospreys hovering in the sky, perched on the magnificent cardon cacti and some of them landing on their nests. Great blue herons were also nesting in the vicinity, at least two nests, and several of these beautiful birds were seen.
Walking through the arroyos, or dry riverbeds, we discovered incredible adaptations of the plants to survive in the extreme desert conditions. Some of the resident bird species were present as well as some of the interesting lizards that inhabit this island. The tide was low, and exploring the shoreline at low tide can be really interesting. Near our landing there were some exposed rocks, where marine organisms that have a high tolerance for changing environments live. By exploring this tidal pools we discovered barnacles, urchins, sea stars of different kinds, anemones and many other striking creatures.
Since the winds from the east gained speed, we repositioned the ship to the opposite side of the island for the afternoon activities. We found a nice protected beach on the west side, which is ideal for water activities. Here we snorkeled from the beach; as we submerged ourselves into the productive waters of the Gulf of California we could see many of the species of fish: several stingrays, king angels, wrasses and many different invertebrates, like sea stars and urchins.
Kayaking was spectacular, as we explored the shoreline of caves and cliffs of the island we could also take a closer look at the crabs on the rocks, the yellow-footed gulls and osprey nests on the rocks. This was a wonderful first day of our expedition through the Vermillion Sea.
