Los Islotes and La Paz, 1/7/2025, National Geographic Venture
Aboard the
National Geographic Venture
Baja California
At the break of dawn, National Geographic Venture was anchored near Los Islotes so that we could see the California sea lions, either by snorkeling or Zodiac cruise. After wildlife viewing, we all tucked in for a lovely brunch and then a presentation by one of our naturalists. In the afternoon we went into La Paz, had a local ice cream, a cultural performance, and an amazing meal at a local restaurant.
I like to remind people that there are very few big surprises left in life, but if you are out in nature, with an open mind and a lot of time, you never know what you will find.
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After a gorgeous sunrise in Magdalena Bay, our guests disembarked National Geographic Venture to explore Punta Belcher on Isla Magdalena, one of the barrier islands that protects the bay. We set out with our natural history staff on various walks: birding, photography, beachcombing, and some walked up the hillside identifying desert plants along the way. Back on board, the guests had a wonderful lunch followed by a series of informative and engaging lectures as we sailed through La Entrada, the mouth of Magdalena Bay, and headed south to continue our journey. Our afternoon at sea included a talk by Adrian Cerda called, “Ghosts of the Dunes” on coyotes, and Marylou Blakeslee spoke about the ecology of Baja. We topped it off with a fun cocktail hour and recap, another fabulous dinner, and an evening presentation by Steve Backus on desert adaptations titled, “Beating the Heat.” What a fantastic and educational day!
We awoke to a gentle breeze as National Geographic Venture lifted anchor and set out to sea. As the sun crested the mountains, seabirds departed their roosts to feed on the morning’s bounty. In our time offshore, hundreds of dolphins paid us a visit while grey and humpback whales passed us by. For the afternoon, we set out to get up-close experiences with the marine life. Being in a small boat with our local Mexican guides was a great experience as they navigated the shallow waters of Bahia Almejas and provided us with amazing views of multiple gray whales. With a wonderful first day behind us, we look forward to what tomorrow brings.
Closing out our last day of this amazing voyage, we returned to Bahia Almejas for another session with the gray whales. Once again it did not disappoint, as we were surrounded by gorgeous spyhopping gray whales. After lunch our guests had the opportunity to enjoy kayaks and hikes at Punta Belcher. After our beach time we enjoyed the music of Los Coyotes, followed by our fiesta dinner, and finally the guest slide show to close out the week. An unbelievable journey!
