The last rounds of gray whale watching started today very early in the mornig with a nice bright sun, light breeze, and a strong tidal current at the Boca de la Soledad. Up to nine pairs of cows and calves were present in this northern part of the Magdalena coastal lagoon, and some of them got close to us and allowed us to pet them. We also observed a good repertoire of their behavior, like breeching. Our interactions with them were, therefore, less intense than yesterday due to the occurrence of strong tidal currents at this time of the month, which are vital for the calves. The continuous swimming against them promotes the ontogenetic development of the babies and the necessary skills for the journey that would take them to the feeding grounds in the Bering Sea for the first time; but in this coastal lagoon they had a great time with us!
We finished the whale watching and moved down towards the area of San Carlos port along the Canal de la Soledad. All aboard enjoyed a wonderful lunch on deck with hamburgers, pork ribs and “paletas” from a La Paz ice-cream shop, while contemplating, from the National Geographic Sea Bird, dozens of birds and the beauty of the canal with its mudflats and mangroves. Before the arrival to San Carlos, we dropped anchor at El Barril, a locality with an extensive patch of mangroves where we cruised in the channels that have developed inside, called “esteros” by the local people. Exploration of these esteros was great thanks to presence of many shore and marine birds that seek for food and shelter among them. Later, after the sunset, the ship anchored to rest in the ample southern part of Magdalena Bay.
Very soon, we will be back home and everything is going to be the same, but as one of our naturalists, Larry Hobbs, said, we are not the same: we have changed inside thanks to the gray whales. We all agreed with that.
