La Entrada and Canal de la Soledad, Bahia Magdalena
After a calm nocturnal navigation on the Pacific Ocean, en route to the gray whale's breeding quarters in Magdalena Bay, we finally reached the southern part, known as La Entrada or The Entrance. As soon as the Sea Lion sailed across the gray-looking waters of the lagoon (coloration given by the reflection of the cloudy sky in the water), we began to see the first and very active adult males and females of the gray whale. In fact, this location is well known as the "mating area" of the bay because adult individuals meet here to reproduce, sometimes in a very conspicuous way. We did not stop and continued to our late morning's destination, the wonderful ecosystem known as the sand dunes.
Right on the dunes, we observed the tide going very low after being very high, as normally occurs every month with either the full or new moon. In these days, however, as described by our pilot Alejandro, we had the "seasonal tide" (as it is called locally), meaning that exceptionally high and low tides occur by a unique combination of factors, including the length and the level of isolation of the lagoon. To our delight, the water was covering the flat and lower parts of a great area among the dunes, giving them a weird but beautiful and unusual, look (photo). Eventually this water goes out, or percolates, leaving organic matter that is consumed by bacteria. The resulting debris and by-products enter into the ocean again as dissolved nutrients, closing an endless but important biological circle.
In the afternoon we continued our navigation through the very nursery of the gray whales, without stopping. From our ship, as we progressed towards the area close to the town of Lopez Mateos, many cows and calves were observed as a first introduction of what should be a promising whale watching tomorrow.
After a calm nocturnal navigation on the Pacific Ocean, en route to the gray whale's breeding quarters in Magdalena Bay, we finally reached the southern part, known as La Entrada or The Entrance. As soon as the Sea Lion sailed across the gray-looking waters of the lagoon (coloration given by the reflection of the cloudy sky in the water), we began to see the first and very active adult males and females of the gray whale. In fact, this location is well known as the "mating area" of the bay because adult individuals meet here to reproduce, sometimes in a very conspicuous way. We did not stop and continued to our late morning's destination, the wonderful ecosystem known as the sand dunes.
Right on the dunes, we observed the tide going very low after being very high, as normally occurs every month with either the full or new moon. In these days, however, as described by our pilot Alejandro, we had the "seasonal tide" (as it is called locally), meaning that exceptionally high and low tides occur by a unique combination of factors, including the length and the level of isolation of the lagoon. To our delight, the water was covering the flat and lower parts of a great area among the dunes, giving them a weird but beautiful and unusual, look (photo). Eventually this water goes out, or percolates, leaving organic matter that is consumed by bacteria. The resulting debris and by-products enter into the ocean again as dissolved nutrients, closing an endless but important biological circle.
In the afternoon we continued our navigation through the very nursery of the gray whales, without stopping. From our ship, as we progressed towards the area close to the town of Lopez Mateos, many cows and calves were observed as a first introduction of what should be a promising whale watching tomorrow.
