Los Islotes, the Gulf of California
The Sea Lion left her anchorage in Ensenada Grande, Isla Partida, in the early morning hours to continue our exploration of the Gulf of California. The early morning light of a beautiful Baja California sunrise reflected off of the multicolored volcanic layers of the Sierra de la Giganta – the Mountains of the Giantess. Bottlenose and common dolphins and humpback whales all joined us in greeting the new day. And that was all before breakfast!
Our morning excursion began on a seemingly endless half-moon shaped sand beach on Isla San Francisco. From there we fanned out in multiple directions - to climb a ridge to gaze out over the sea beyond, to admire the flowers of the desert after winter rains, to poke into tidepools with a diversity of marine creatures, and to explore by kayak in the protected bay.
And our afternoon – ah, yes, our afternoon! We visited the small volcanic islets of Los Islotes, erosional remnants of nearby Isla Partida. California sea lions find this the perfect place to haul out on the rocks and cavort in the adjacent sea. We were greeted by a cacophony of sea lion barks and growls announcing that this was their spot and we are only visitors (and so it is, for the Mexican government has declared Los Islotes a sea lion sanctuary.) Large males lolled on the rocks, surrounded by the much smaller females and pups, many of the pups still nursing. A highlight of the day was to don snorkel gear, slip into the clear water and enter the true element of the sea lions. The pups, in particular, seemed to take us as new objects with which to play, zooming at and around us with remarkable agility, and occasionally sneaking in for a rear approach to give a tug on a rubber swim flipper. It is difficult to maintain composure with a sea lion pup staring into your mask! Our visit to Los Islotes closed with Zodiac cruises around the islets to try for the perfect photo memory (it’s all about light and composition!), or simply to record these images on the pixels of the mind.
The Sea Lion left her anchorage in Ensenada Grande, Isla Partida, in the early morning hours to continue our exploration of the Gulf of California. The early morning light of a beautiful Baja California sunrise reflected off of the multicolored volcanic layers of the Sierra de la Giganta – the Mountains of the Giantess. Bottlenose and common dolphins and humpback whales all joined us in greeting the new day. And that was all before breakfast!
Our morning excursion began on a seemingly endless half-moon shaped sand beach on Isla San Francisco. From there we fanned out in multiple directions - to climb a ridge to gaze out over the sea beyond, to admire the flowers of the desert after winter rains, to poke into tidepools with a diversity of marine creatures, and to explore by kayak in the protected bay.
And our afternoon – ah, yes, our afternoon! We visited the small volcanic islets of Los Islotes, erosional remnants of nearby Isla Partida. California sea lions find this the perfect place to haul out on the rocks and cavort in the adjacent sea. We were greeted by a cacophony of sea lion barks and growls announcing that this was their spot and we are only visitors (and so it is, for the Mexican government has declared Los Islotes a sea lion sanctuary.) Large males lolled on the rocks, surrounded by the much smaller females and pups, many of the pups still nursing. A highlight of the day was to don snorkel gear, slip into the clear water and enter the true element of the sea lions. The pups, in particular, seemed to take us as new objects with which to play, zooming at and around us with remarkable agility, and occasionally sneaking in for a rear approach to give a tug on a rubber swim flipper. It is difficult to maintain composure with a sea lion pup staring into your mask! Our visit to Los Islotes closed with Zodiac cruises around the islets to try for the perfect photo memory (it’s all about light and composition!), or simply to record these images on the pixels of the mind.
