Puerto Balandra
Guests and staff awoke this morning – the final day of 2004, to discover another beautiful morning awaiting us here in the Sea of Cortez. Before breakfast, Captain Graves and the crew of the Sea Lion anchored inside of the small bay of Puerto Balandra. With the ship no more than 100 yards from the sandy beach, we watched as local fisherman brought in their nets and set out for Loreto with a full morning’s catch. After breakfast, we came ashore excited to explore this beautiful area. With Baja sunshine coming down from above and almost no breeze, conditions could not have been better. Once ashore, many of the guests set out for a long hike with naturalist Pete Pederson. With a goal to find an old windmill built back in 1921, the group also had an opportunity to observe several local plants including palo verde and palo blanco as well as to catch a glimpse of a fleeting jackrabbit. Others stayed closer to the beach paddling kayaks around the natural bay or inspecting a fisherman’s hut along the beach.
Meanwhile, six passengers, along with Undersea Specialist Erica Iyengar set off for their own underwater scuba discovery farther south. The divers enjoyed a great morning of discovery encountering bullseye stingrays, several varieties of moray eels, damselfish, and armies of sergeant major fish.
This afternoon included several special events for the young explorers on board this family voyage. After breaking up in to small groups, the children visited three ‘stations’ including a rope-tying class with the Chief Officer and crew, a plankton tow with Andrea and Erika, and a navigation lesson with Captain Mark. The highlight of the afternoon was when the Captain and second-officer Jody handed over the controls of theSea Lion and announced over the ship’s P.A. which child was now piloting the ship. In fact, each child’s name was entered into the Captain’s log during their time at the pilot wheel! These activities were a great success and allowed many of the crew to demonstrate their knowledge, interests, and talents with the young people on board.
A second special event of the day for the children came later this evening when the Boatswain Laci passed out official Jr. Zodiac cards to the ten children who had participated in a boat-driving activity the day before. Following dinner, guests and crew came together on the bridge deck to celebrate together in bringing in the New Year. Complete with dance music and limbo sticks, we enjoyed the last few moments of 2004 together and celebrated, in this very special place, welcoming 2005 here in the Sea of Cortez.
Guests and staff awoke this morning – the final day of 2004, to discover another beautiful morning awaiting us here in the Sea of Cortez. Before breakfast, Captain Graves and the crew of the Sea Lion anchored inside of the small bay of Puerto Balandra. With the ship no more than 100 yards from the sandy beach, we watched as local fisherman brought in their nets and set out for Loreto with a full morning’s catch. After breakfast, we came ashore excited to explore this beautiful area. With Baja sunshine coming down from above and almost no breeze, conditions could not have been better. Once ashore, many of the guests set out for a long hike with naturalist Pete Pederson. With a goal to find an old windmill built back in 1921, the group also had an opportunity to observe several local plants including palo verde and palo blanco as well as to catch a glimpse of a fleeting jackrabbit. Others stayed closer to the beach paddling kayaks around the natural bay or inspecting a fisherman’s hut along the beach.
Meanwhile, six passengers, along with Undersea Specialist Erica Iyengar set off for their own underwater scuba discovery farther south. The divers enjoyed a great morning of discovery encountering bullseye stingrays, several varieties of moray eels, damselfish, and armies of sergeant major fish.
This afternoon included several special events for the young explorers on board this family voyage. After breaking up in to small groups, the children visited three ‘stations’ including a rope-tying class with the Chief Officer and crew, a plankton tow with Andrea and Erika, and a navigation lesson with Captain Mark. The highlight of the afternoon was when the Captain and second-officer Jody handed over the controls of theSea Lion and announced over the ship’s P.A. which child was now piloting the ship. In fact, each child’s name was entered into the Captain’s log during their time at the pilot wheel! These activities were a great success and allowed many of the crew to demonstrate their knowledge, interests, and talents with the young people on board.
A second special event of the day for the children came later this evening when the Boatswain Laci passed out official Jr. Zodiac cards to the ten children who had participated in a boat-driving activity the day before. Following dinner, guests and crew came together on the bridge deck to celebrate together in bringing in the New Year. Complete with dance music and limbo sticks, we enjoyed the last few moments of 2004 together and celebrated, in this very special place, welcoming 2005 here in the Sea of Cortez.
