Isla Espiritu Santo and Los Islotes, Baja California Sur, México
In a cloudless sky we visited Isla Espiritu Santo (Holy Ghost Island). During the morning we hiked and kayaked at Ensenada Grande (Big Bay). Because of the very abundant rains the area has had during all this winter, the island is green. An incredible number of plants are in bloom with blue, pink, orange and yellow flowers, and even water is to be found in small pools along the usually dry arroyo along which we hiked. It really doesn’t feel like a desert! The island also sports a good number of endemic animals, animals with a very small distribution. Among them are the “black” jackrabbit and the antelope ground squirrel. Most of us saw the last one in several very different places.
In the afternoon we repositioned at the northern end of the island, Los Islotes, and had a very interesting snorkeling session with the young California sea lions and many semi-tropical fish and ocean invertebrates. Immediately following, we had a series of cruises in our Zodiacs along these islets, and enjoyed these magnificent pinnipeds close up. A good number of birds, such as magnificent frigate birds, pelicans, brown and blue-footed boobies were also seen.
In a cloudless sky we visited Isla Espiritu Santo (Holy Ghost Island). During the morning we hiked and kayaked at Ensenada Grande (Big Bay). Because of the very abundant rains the area has had during all this winter, the island is green. An incredible number of plants are in bloom with blue, pink, orange and yellow flowers, and even water is to be found in small pools along the usually dry arroyo along which we hiked. It really doesn’t feel like a desert! The island also sports a good number of endemic animals, animals with a very small distribution. Among them are the “black” jackrabbit and the antelope ground squirrel. Most of us saw the last one in several very different places.
In the afternoon we repositioned at the northern end of the island, Los Islotes, and had a very interesting snorkeling session with the young California sea lions and many semi-tropical fish and ocean invertebrates. Immediately following, we had a series of cruises in our Zodiacs along these islets, and enjoyed these magnificent pinnipeds close up. A good number of birds, such as magnificent frigate birds, pelicans, brown and blue-footed boobies were also seen.
