Santa Catalina and Carmen Islands
The beautiful low light made Santa Catalina Island glow as we approached her shortly after sunrise. Not long after breakfast, we brave explorers went hiking and looked for the many creatures that call this place home. Almost immediately, we discovered two of them, both species endemic to this island: a gecko and a mouse. As this island has never been connected to neither the Baja California peninsula nor the mainland coast of Mexico, it holds the highest number of endemic species in the Sea of Cortez. We continued our hike and soon found several more interesting species, including the rattle-less rattlesnake pictured here. Among enormous cardón and giant barrel cacti, we had a nice time of bird-watching and exploration. Shortly after, we enjoyed the clear waters and went snorkeling, scuba diving and swimming.
After leaving Santa Catalina, the Sea Voyager sailed north-west towards our afternoon anchorage at Carmen Island, a merely three-hour ride away. However, our best intentions were challenged by a number of marine creatures that made us slow down our speed: (not very reluctantly, by the way!) Mobula rays jumping high in the air or chasing each other at the surface; bow-riding bottlenose dolphins; a large feeding-frenzy of sea birds and long-beaked common dolphins, and even three humpback whales! It was hard but we finally made it to Carmen Island, just in time to go hiking again, this time looking for the magnificent desert bighorn sheep. And just as the sun slowly started its final run behind the Sierra de la Giganta, three sheep were spotted, making the perfect end for a perfect day…
The beautiful low light made Santa Catalina Island glow as we approached her shortly after sunrise. Not long after breakfast, we brave explorers went hiking and looked for the many creatures that call this place home. Almost immediately, we discovered two of them, both species endemic to this island: a gecko and a mouse. As this island has never been connected to neither the Baja California peninsula nor the mainland coast of Mexico, it holds the highest number of endemic species in the Sea of Cortez. We continued our hike and soon found several more interesting species, including the rattle-less rattlesnake pictured here. Among enormous cardón and giant barrel cacti, we had a nice time of bird-watching and exploration. Shortly after, we enjoyed the clear waters and went snorkeling, scuba diving and swimming.
After leaving Santa Catalina, the Sea Voyager sailed north-west towards our afternoon anchorage at Carmen Island, a merely three-hour ride away. However, our best intentions were challenged by a number of marine creatures that made us slow down our speed: (not very reluctantly, by the way!) Mobula rays jumping high in the air or chasing each other at the surface; bow-riding bottlenose dolphins; a large feeding-frenzy of sea birds and long-beaked common dolphins, and even three humpback whales! It was hard but we finally made it to Carmen Island, just in time to go hiking again, this time looking for the magnificent desert bighorn sheep. And just as the sun slowly started its final run behind the Sierra de la Giganta, three sheep were spotted, making the perfect end for a perfect day…
