Rasa and Partida Islands
The Sea Voyager sailed northbound through the night to reach the Canal de Ballenas (Whale’s Canal) this morning. Before breakfast, a couple of fin whales, the second largest animal in the world, was seen probably foraging, as these waters are considered very rich in marine life thanks to the occurrence of upwelling. We moved lately to get a second target, but we again were gifted with sights of a pod of common dolphins, that approached the ship in search for a bow riding.
When the ship went close to Partida Norte, our morning destination, we observed the eroded crater-like structure of the island’s bay, a good indication of the past violent volcanic activity in the area. In fact, columnar basalt formations, as well as old lava flows and layers of ash, were seen everywhere on the island. That was a nice spot so we decided to play with our kayaks from the stern of the ship. A Zodiac, as a platform for snorkeling, was also set. The banana boat worked as the most important toy for young explorers.
In the late morning we boarded our rubber boats again to cruise in search for California sea lions in a close and isolated basaltic rockery. There, the big excited males were chasing intruders into the water as they where defending territories. Sea lion mating was in progress as well as pup nursing, so our party left the place dissimulating a bigger interest on blue-footed and brown boobies. We pulled anchor up to sail towards Rasa Island, the afternoon destination. We waited for the tide to come up, and once the little bay was filled with sea water, we disembarked and made cruises around the island. Few individuals of Herrmann’s Gulls, and royal and elegant terns were seen as the breeding season is coming to the end. Peregrine falcons and cormorants were present as well.
The final show of the day was given by a large pod of Common dolphins, traveling next to the Sea Voyager, perhaps in search of schools of fish. Hundreds of these animals, jumping out the water (photo), accompanied us along several minutes, just to evaporate as fast as they appeared.
The Sea Voyager sailed northbound through the night to reach the Canal de Ballenas (Whale’s Canal) this morning. Before breakfast, a couple of fin whales, the second largest animal in the world, was seen probably foraging, as these waters are considered very rich in marine life thanks to the occurrence of upwelling. We moved lately to get a second target, but we again were gifted with sights of a pod of common dolphins, that approached the ship in search for a bow riding.
When the ship went close to Partida Norte, our morning destination, we observed the eroded crater-like structure of the island’s bay, a good indication of the past violent volcanic activity in the area. In fact, columnar basalt formations, as well as old lava flows and layers of ash, were seen everywhere on the island. That was a nice spot so we decided to play with our kayaks from the stern of the ship. A Zodiac, as a platform for snorkeling, was also set. The banana boat worked as the most important toy for young explorers.
In the late morning we boarded our rubber boats again to cruise in search for California sea lions in a close and isolated basaltic rockery. There, the big excited males were chasing intruders into the water as they where defending territories. Sea lion mating was in progress as well as pup nursing, so our party left the place dissimulating a bigger interest on blue-footed and brown boobies. We pulled anchor up to sail towards Rasa Island, the afternoon destination. We waited for the tide to come up, and once the little bay was filled with sea water, we disembarked and made cruises around the island. Few individuals of Herrmann’s Gulls, and royal and elegant terns were seen as the breeding season is coming to the end. Peregrine falcons and cormorants were present as well.
The final show of the day was given by a large pod of Common dolphins, traveling next to the Sea Voyager, perhaps in search of schools of fish. Hundreds of these animals, jumping out the water (photo), accompanied us along several minutes, just to evaporate as fast as they appeared.
