National Geographic Sea Bird slowly sailed south through the night to be at our morning’s destination right at sunrise. We arrived to Los Islotes, the southernmost breeding colony of California sea lions in the Gulf. Here, we embarked our inflatable boats to take a closer look at these interesting and slightly funny marine mammals. Los Islotes is also a popular place for seabirds to roost through the night. Some birds like a few pairs of blue-footed boobies also find the rocks a safe place to nest and raise their young.
Later in the morning, we had the wonderful opportunity to get in the water and see the submarine life of the sea lions up close and personal. The adult animals would swim by without paying much attention to us. On the other hand, the youngsters found us to be an attractive addition to their morning. The year-old pups got very close to us and stuck their whiskers on our facemasks! Some would swim very fast at us only to turn away at the last fraction of a second. One of the highlights was a Brandt’s cormorant that kept on chasing a school of flatiron herring. It was amazing to see how agile the cormorant was as it herded the fish at high speed underwater, until it finally caught one.
Bahia Bonanza, which is located at the south western side of Espiritu Santo Island, is one of the most magnificent long sandy beaches in the Gulf. Here we took advantage of the calm conditions to kayak, try out the stand-up paddleboards, explore the desert by foot, or simply enjoy a pleasant time on the beach. Some adventurous guests ventured high up into the rocky hillsides to get some exercise and take in a magnificent view of the entire bay.
We ended the day with a delicious dinner ashore. Our chefs prepared a fancy assortment of dishes including seared tuna, grilled chicken, vegetables, salads, and some wonderful desserts. We briefly enjoyed the bonfire until the wind started shifting direction and increasing in intensity. We decided to continue back on board the ship. In the comfort of the lounge we had a presentation by our expedition leader on how California got its name followed by a documentary about the Gulf of California.
