Los Islotos and La Paz , 1/18/2024, National Geographic Venture
Aboard the
National Geographic Venture
Baja California
This morning we had the opportunity to swim with sea lions. They were so curious that some even jumped up onto the Zodiac. The island of Los Islotos is home to 16 sea lion colonies, called rafts. In the afternoon we made our way to La Paz. There we enjoyed dancing and singing, as well as a wonderful feast.
It was a day filled with culture and wildlife and everyone was thrilled.
Sierra Phillips is a United Nations Youth Delegate and National Geographic Educator who received a master's degree in Exploration Sciences. Her training includes extensive work in marine biology/ecology, nautical archaeology, marine mammal care, shar...
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This morning National Geographic Venture anchored at El Cardonal, one of the many little bays along the protected western coast of Espiritu Santo Island. Espiritu Santo is one of our favorite islands in the Gulf of California for its beautiful pink-red-orange calc-alkaline ignimbrites, which are part of the Comondu Volcanic Field. We hiked and explored the land, discovering the combination of three magnificent ecosystems –mangroves, dunes with halophytic plants, and the desert vegetation. Many cardon, galloping, and organ pipe cactuses were seen by our interested guests and staff under sunny and breezy climatic conditions. A number of sea and land birds were also observed, as well as tracks of one of the endemic island mammals: the ring-tailed cat, the smallest member of the raccoon family. After lunch and a very interesting presentation about the origin of the Gulf of California, guests were invited to snorkel along the northern rocky shore of El Cardonal and to explore by Zodiac. This active day was finished and crowned by a multicolored sunset behind the peak of the impressive La Giganta Mountain Range, also built by volcanic ignimbrites.
Our first full day together exploring the waters of the beautiful Sea of Cortez could not have been better. Shortly after sunrise we spotted several tall whale blows in the distance just south of Danzante Island, one of the five islands of the Loreto Bay National Park. Upon closer examination, we realized that the blows belonged to no regular whales, but to the largest animal on our planet, blue whales! We watched them against the magnificent background of the La Giganta mountain range, whose rich colors really made for a spectacular scene. National Geographic Venture continued sailing south and entered the San Jose Channel. Soon we found not one or two but literally dozens of sperm whales in all directions. Their distinctive blows could be seen all around us and several groups made some close passes, the same as some bottlenose dolphins swimming with the much larger whales. What a way to start our time exploring the waters around the peninsula of Baja California!
We enjoyed another amazing sunrise this morning, with the addition of multiple sightings of sperm whales just before breakfast — what a way to start our last day in Baja on National Geographic Venture ! After breakfast we had a landing at Punta Gato, in an area with a lovely long sand beach and incredible sandstone formations, for walks through Baja’s unique desert landscape. A number of guests enjoyed a refreshing dip in the ocean, while others just relaxed on their last landing of the voyage! All afternoon we cruised the rich Sea of Cortez waters looking for more marine life, and we were finally rewarded with a sunset encounter with multiple blue whales, the largest creatures on our wonderful planet. Another perfect day in Baja!
