Los Islotes and Bahia Bonanza, Isla Espiritu Santo

After travelling through the night, National Geographic Sea Bird arrived near our morning anchorage at dawn. The first activity of the day came at sunrise—a “Gilly Drop.” As part of a project for National Geographic researcher Dr. William Gilly, the ship’s officers dropped a device overboard to gather oxygen levels and other data. Not long afterward the Zodiacs were lowered to the water and we began explorations of Los Islotes, “the eyelets,” a resting area for many seabirds, including brown and blue-footed boobies, pelicans, and frigatebirds, and a popular haul-out for California sea lions. Zodiac tours and snorkeling brought us closer to the amazing acrobatics and antics of these graceful swimmers. Our undersea specialist dove deeper down and in the evening shared wonderful footage of the abundant underwater sea plants and creatures.

In the afternoon National Geographic Sea Bird made her way to the southeastern tip of Espiritu Santo to a gorgeous sandy beach in Bahia Bonanza. Here we explored via snorkeling, kayaking, and desert and beach walks. The beach was a treasure trove of shells, stones, and bones. The desert sands were alive with tracks of coyote and jackrabbit. Some were lucky enough to see these creatures in the distance.

In the evening we gathered in the lounge to share our photos pulled together into a slideshow by our photography instructor. And one of our guests shared with me a song he wrote, inspired by his week here (see below). It’s been an incredible week—but then again, this is Baja California.

Zodiac Rap (by Mark Doty)

I was stepping off the Sea-Bird
Just the other day
Onto this black thang – underway
Lovin’ every minute – wanting more
Doin’ crazy thangs – to my silly-ack
Check me out – on the Zo-Di-Ack
Zo-Di-Ac – Za-Za-Za – Zo-Di-Ack
Everybody say Zo-Di-Ack
Come on ya’ll Zo-Di-Ack
Everybody clap
Gettin’ back on – feet to the Honda
Checkin’ out whales – sea lions too
Just got a whiff – of Booby doo-doo
Back on the Bird – sand in my sandles
Doc Kelley speaking – kinda rambles
Everybody now – Here’s the angle
Zo-Di-Ack – Za-Za-Za – Zo-Di-Ack
Say what? Zo-Di-Ack
Come on ya’ll Zo-Di-Ack
Everybody clap Zo-Di-Ack
Get back on the Zo-Di-Ack
Attack of the Zo-Di-Ack
Za-Za-Za – Zo-Di-Ack
Eat a snack on the Zo-Di-Ack
Like crack it’s a Zo-Di-Ack
G – O – Graph – Zo-Di-Ack