Morning aboard National Geographic Sea Bird. For the very early risers it meant stepping onto the foredeck in full darkness with our ship still at anchor in Half Moon Bay, Isla San Francisco. Our reward was a brilliant display of stars, the Big Dipper pointing the way to the north, the scabbard of Orion hanging from his belt, and Jupiter shining brightly in the west. The stars faded as a thin veil of clouds covered the sky and turned the eastern sky into a spectacular light show. The old adage "Red sky in the morning ..." turned out to be false, as our red morning sky led to another beautiful Baja California day.
Our morning destination of Los Islotes is home to a colony of California sea lions as well as roosting seabirds leaving their distinctive white frosting on the volcanic rocks. We began our visit by entering the water to snorkel with the playful mammals. The young sea lions seemed to regard us as playthings, swimming tight circles around us, twisting and turning, approaching to gaze closely into our swim masks, and nipping at our flippers. It was hard not to laugh at their antics. The water was full of schools of bright fishes.
We followed our snorkel experience with small boat tours around the islets to look at sea lions draped over the rocks and making a din with their incessant barking, from the high-pitched bleats of the young to the basso roars of the males. Soon the playfulness of the colony will give way to the serious business of breeding. The largest males will return to battle over territories, the females to give birth and mate again soon after. Frigatebirds and turkey vultures soared over the islands. We looked up at small, guano-lined ledges in search of blue-footed boobies, and we looked down at the barnacle-covered rocks just above the water to find bright blue and red Sally lightfoot crabs.
We departed and moved south, pausing for an encounter with a large pod of common dolphins. Some of them joined us to take a ride on the pressure wave created by the bow of our ship. We reached Bahia Bonanza, near the south end of Isla Espiritu Santo. There, all of our water toys came out: snorkel gear, kayaks, and (a new addition to the ship this year) stand-up paddleboards. We could enjoy the water, walk a bit inland to see the desert vegetation, stroll up the long white beach, or simply relax in a chair and take it all in.
As we were enjoying our day, the crew of National Geographic Sea Bird was busy transporting all of the necessities for a beach barbecue dinner served on shore. A fire was lit and the chairs gathered closer. As the light faded into night, stars once again captured the Baja California sky.
