San Marcos, Santa Rosalia, and Marine Mammal Waters
We woke this morning to clear skies and calm seas, perfect conditions for observing marine mammals. Sure, at some point we went for a walk, kayaked, and snorkeled. We even visited the small town of Santa Rosalia and feasted on the delicious fresh pastries. The day, however, really focused on marine mammals.
Just after sunrise we spotted some blows. First, an erratic Bryde’s whale tricked us, before we focused on a much taller blow. The largest of all, a blue! Numerous times the blue whale surfaced near the ship, delighting everyone on board with its massive size. A fin whale was also spotted, and it was great to compare the difference in characteristics between these two largest animals ever to have lived.
During our morning’s activities at San Marcos, two humpback whales were spotted. A Zodiac cruise turned into a whale watching cruise, and some of us were lucky enough to have repeated breaches, very close to the Zodiacs. What a spectacular experience! Soon, everyone was out in Zodiacs and for a few hours we followed these two humpbacks. One of the whales had a previous encounter with orca, and it was interesting to see the scars and the amount of the flukes that were missing.
After we all re-boarded the National Geographic Sea Bird, we again spotted more blue whales. One was logging near the surface and allowed for close approach. A few dolphins were spotted, but time was finally running out, and we had to move on.
The richness of the waters here in Baja really showed today. Four species of baleen whale, including the two largest, made for an incredible experience. To be able to enjoy them in calm seas and from the Zodiacs were hopefully a hint of more yet to come.
